Muse (Beneath Her Beautiful)
by LibraQueen13
Summary: Bonenzo fic. Enzo returns to the cabin after he & Bonnie get closer than ever before in 7x19. How will they interact with each other now that everything has changed between them & how does their relationship progress? ***Rated M***
1. Chapter 1

Part 1: Muse

Enzo entered the cabin to find Bonnie standing at the kitchen counter sipping on a colourful beverage. Wearing a short, sapphire blue, butterfly patterned robe, no make-up and her hair up in a messy bun, she was the most alluring woman he had ever seen. He had to remind himself for the millionth time since he began the drive back to the cabin to maintain some degree of self-control when he saw her by not jumping on her as soon as he walked through the door. But as soon as she looked at him with those gorgeous green eyes it was inevitable that his self-control would be shot to hell. He felt like the big bad wolf with all the dirty thoughts he'd been having about her as she looked at him with a mixture of surprise and nervous anticipation. It had been 31 hours (give or take) since they'd reluctantly said good bye to each other after finally giving in to the sexual tension that had been brewing between them over the last few years. They'd spent hours making up for lost time…on the couch… up against the wall… in bed…They couldn't get enough of each other and it seemed that trend wasn't about to end any time soon.

Enzo walked towards Bonnie intently, maintaining eye contact all the while to gauge any hesitation on her part. He saw a hint of a smile radiating in her eyes and without saying a word he placed his hand at the side of her face tilting it up slightly so that he could devour her mouth with the slowest, deepest, sexiest kiss he had ever planted on a woman in his life. He could hear her heartbeat racing as their mouths separated and he rested his forehead against hers. He nuzzled her nose as he tried to get his urges under control, but after just one kiss there was no hiding his arousal, which was currently pressing against Bonnie's belly. She licked her lips and he gave her a lingering peck on the mouth before pulling back slightly to look into her eyes. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she curled her hands around his neck.

"Hi." Bonnie said.

"Hey." Enzo responded.

They both stared at each other for a moment smiling, then broke into somewhat shy laughter. Things were still new between them and despite the fact that they were 100% comfortable with each other on a platonic level, they were still getting used to each other on an intimate level. It was exciting, but there was still a little uncertainty. Although they had both completely fallen for each other at this point, neither was willing to say it out loud just yet.

"Did you miss me?" Enzo queried, secretly desperate for Bonnie to say that she pined for him while he was gone.

"What…miss you poking fun at my guitar playing at every given opportunity?!" Bonnie teased.

"Well last time I was here we spent all our time with me poking you in other ways at every given opportunity." Enzo replied.

Bonnie's mouth opened in shock at his cheeky comment. She then gave Enzo a sultry smile and pressed her body even closer to his causing his manhood to ache with a desperate need to be inside her immediately.

"Any ideas about how we should spend our time right now…? I mean, who knows how long you're here for this time… and I think I feel something poking me again…" Bonnie told Enzo as she looked up at him flirtatiously.

Her words pushed him over the edge. He was already ridiculously turned on, but he didn't want to treat her like a 'booty call', so he'd planned to take his time with her when he returned to the cabin. Clearly Bonnie had other ideas. Lust took over as Enzo put his hands under her butt cheeks and lifted her to sit on the kitchen counter nearly knocking over the glass she had been drinking from. He stood between her thighs and pulled open the tie on her robe in one quick motion opening it up to reveal that all she had on underneath it was a lacy, midnight blue thong. At this rate he would climax before he even entered her. He stroked her thighs moving his hands upwards towards her centre. The glazed over look in Bonnie's eyes and the change in her breathing told him she was as turned on as he was. Enzo slid his hands up her hips inside her robe, towards her waist, up her rib cage and brushed over her breasts. He pushed the robe off her shoulders and let his hands caress her arms as he slid it all the way off. Bonnie wrapped her thighs around his waist and her arms around his neck. The heat from her core felt like it was scalding his erection, but he was determined to satisfy her with a little more finesse than a dog in heat. She pulled him in for a kiss this time, curling her tongue around his in a way that left him in awe. She was driving him insane with the tongue action in his mouth and the way she was grinding her groin into his. She pulled away from him suddenly, pushing his jacket off onto the floor and practically ripping his t-shirt off him. She pulled him back towards her by the waistband of his jeans and began to undo the button and zip. Enzo stilled her hands and answering her confused look he said, "I'm this close to embarrassing myself with the way you're touching me. I want you to enjoy this too."

Bonnie's look changed to one of understanding. "OK." She responded, with a soft but sultry smile.

He pecked her on the mouth then moved his gaze to her naked breasts. Stroking them with his fingers he kissed her neck then licked his way down in between her breasts, moving down to dip his tongue into her navel. He slid his hands further down to her thighs then lowered his body so that he could kiss the inside of each thigh. The smell of her arousal made him eager to taste her as he moved her now soaking wet thong to one side and took one slow lick in between her nether lips. Her taste was amazing and the moan she released was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. He licked her again separating her folds and exposing the hard, pulsating bud of her clit. He kissed the bud teasing her before sucking it into his mouth like a Polo mint. She lifted her hips and he feasted on her using his tongue and mouth to worship the core of her femininity.

"Oh God… Enzo..." Bonnie moaned.

He loved the way she said his name when he was giving her pleasure. Her breathing quickened as he used his tongue to circle her clit. He felt her tense as she found her release letting out a long, deep moan. She pushed his head away, too sensitive to take any more for now.

"What did you just do to me? I can't even move!" Bonnie said breathily.

He laughed pleased with himself then kissed each of her thighs before kissing his way up her belly, to each of her breasts, her neck and then her mouth. Hearing her climax almost brought him to his own, so he told her, "Sorry love, this time will be fast but I'll make it up to you again later."

She smiled at his words before he literally ripped off her thong. Bonnie gasped in shock but then helped Enzo to push his boxers and jeans down so that he could free the erection that was now hard enough to pound through concrete. He tried to enter her as gently as possible but she was so wet and soft from his earlier ministrations that he just slid all the way in on the first thrust. He let out a throaty groan at the same time that she moaned. Enzo gripped Bonnie's thighs, which were wrapped around him as he slid into her again and again. He was worried that he would leave bruises on her thighs by the time they were finished, but she seemed to be too busy enjoying the sensations to care despite the fact that he'd practically just immobilised her with the expert use of his tongue. Enzo's thrusts became faster and Bonnie met each one. He knew he wouldn't last much longer, the pleasure was insane. He latched onto her mouth with his as he moved his hands to grip her butt and pull her as close to him as possible. Again, she used that magic tongue of hers in his mouth then grabbed his ass digging her nails into his flesh. Enzo thrust hard and deep holding himself still within Bonnie for several seconds as he came inside her. He let out a guttural moan then began to thrust slowly to ride out the rest of his release. Bonnie ground her hips into his reaching another unexpected climax of her own. She bit down on his shoulder as she moaned. As their bodies relaxed they laughed lightly with a sense of euphoria, looking at each other then sharing a kiss.

"So did you miss me?" Enzo asked Bonnie again.

"What do you think?" She replied. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Yes, of course I missed you!" She answered with a genuine smile this time.

"Good." Enzo stated matter-of-factly.

"Cocky much!?" Bonnie joked.

He smiled at her then said, "All I've thought about since the second I left you was coming back to you. So now I'm back of course I want to hear that you missed me."

Bonnie looked at him moved by his admission, but wanting to keep the mood light she said, "Ok, so now that we've established that we both missed each other… I had my evening planned before you derailed it…"

"By giving you intense pleasure…" Enzo interrupted her sentence.

"You're so damn cocky!"

He just waggled his eyebrows at her. "What did these plans involve then?" He asked.

"Getting tipsy." She replied.

"Thought I tasted rum on your tongue." Enzo said.

"Yeah I made a cocktail then I was gonna take a shower." She added.

"Ok, let's go." Enzo instructed.

"Who said you're coming?" She laughed

"I did. And you're definitely coming again if I have my way!" He insisted.

Bonnie laughed. "What happened to you?"

"What do you mean love?" He asked.

"Where did this sex obsessed version of you come from?"

"I have a new muse."

"Oh yeah?!"

"Yeah. She's about 5'4", bossy but extremely beautiful, has the sexiest body… terrible guitar player though."

She rolled her eyes. "Ok, I've heard enough. Shower time." Bonnie stated.

"Ok, hold on one sec."

Enzo fully removed his jeans, boxers and boots, then lifted Bonnie up putting her over his shoulder fireman style and slapping her on the ass.

"Enzo… What the hell!?"

"Get used to it love. This is the new version of me with you as my muse."

They both laughed as he carried her to the bathroom.


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2: Beneath Her Beautiful

"Can't believe you tore off my underwear." Bonnie said to Enzo as they both stood naked in the bathroom waiting for the water running from the shower head to reach the right temperature.

Bonnie was leaning with her butt against the sink cabinet while Enzo stood near the shower testing the water.

"I'll buy you new ones." He responded, then walked towards her and put his hands on her waist. "Better yet, stop wearing underwear cause I'll probably rip them off again anyway."

"Pervert!" She slapped him on the arm. "I'm not gonna stop wearing underwear because you don't have any self-control." She mocked.

"This coming from the woman who pretty much ripped my t-shirt off me in a fit of lust!" He countered.

"Difference is I didn't actually rip it to shreds!"

Enzo smiled at her still loving their banter and she smiled back. At least now that they were… whatever they were… they got to work out the residual sexual frustration as a result of that banter together. He leaned down to try and kiss Bonnie but she playfully leaned backwards avoiding his kiss with her hands on his forearms.

"Think I'm gonna let you kiss me now panty-ripping-pervert!" She taunted.

He couldn't help but laugh at that. "It's not my fault you're so damn sexy and beautiful that I can't help ripping off your underwear to have my way with you!"

"You're just insane do you know that?!" Bonnie joked.

He just smiled at her. "Yeah. I know."

He looked at her thinking that he actually was insane or maybe a little bit (well maybe a lot) obsessed because she was all he could think about. He didn't exactly know what they were and to be honest he didn't want to worry about that too much for now because then he'd have to think about the fact that he was an immortal vampire and she was a mortal witch. What kind of future could they even have together? And that's once they even got past whatever this shit was with the Amory. All Enzo knew was that he wanted to be with Bonnie and had done for a very long time now. But he'd only just started admitting it to himself. He now knew deep down that the moment he chose to 'protect' her from his alleged family it was because a part of him wanted her for himself. And not in a selfish, narcissistic way. He just wanted to take care of her, be there for her. Here was this young woman who had been through so much, lost so many people. Yet, she was still strong and feisty, loyal and giving. He admired her in a way that no one would ever understand. All those who ever took advantage of her caring nature should be bowing down to her, himself included.

Enzo knew exactly how he felt about Bonnie. Knew for sure that he realised he'd fallen for her on New Year's Eve. But between that time and the first time they acted upon their feelings a few days ago he had to resist. Sure Bonnie wanted him to kiss her on New Year's Eve, but he didn't know if it was the alcohol fuelling her bravado, the fact that she hadn't been around any other men apart from him in such a long time or just general loneliness. He hadn't wanted to take advantage of her vulnerability nor had he wanted to dive into intimacy with her only for her to not genuinely share his feelings. And it wasn't about what he had been through with Maggie or Lily because what he felt for Bonnie was much more than what he ever felt for Maggie and Lily put together. So now all he could do was enjoy being with her and trust that her loyalty and honesty meant she felt for him at least half of what he did for her.

"What?" Bonnie queried as Enzo had been staring at her for what seemed like too long now.

He didn't answer instead he cradled her face in his hands and kissed her so slowly and deeply she felt like she was in another world. When he pulled back she saw a flicker of anxiety in his gaze, but in a blink it was gone and she was slightly confused.

"Water should be ok now, love." He said, taking her by the hand and leading her into the shower. Bonnie pulled the band out of her messy bun once they were under the water. Luckily the shower was quite spacious with a large shower head so they were both able to enjoy some of the water spray. Bonnie reached for her conditioning hair cleanser and was about to pump some into her hand when Enzo offered, "Let me do that for you."

She allowed him to take the cleanser. He scanned the text on the product briefly before following its instructions. He stood behind her and smoothed a generous amount onto Bonnie's hair and began to massage her scalp.

"Mmmm… this is almost as good as sex." She hummed.

Enzo chuckled. "You should know by know what my hands are capable of. And if you keep making noises like that you'll find out what other parts of me are capable of… again."

"Well that's inevitable since we've already established that you're a panty-ripping-pervert who can't keep his hands, mouth and other parts to himself when he's around me." Bonnie stated.

"You love it."

"Maybe." Bonnie teased him and was rewarded with another slap on the ass. "Ow! What's wrong with you?"

"You." Enzo replied partly joking and partly serious.

Bonnie laughed. "I might kinda take up your suggestion of no underwear… but only when it's just the two of us."

"You won't need 'em when it's just the two of us anyway."

She turned her head behind her to look up at the sarcastic glint in his eye, which caused her butt to bump into his groin. Feeling that he was beginning to 'rise' again she said, "God Enzo, does it ever rest?!

"Not with you naked. Or not naked. And remember love you and me have a lot of lost time to make up for."

"How much lost time?" Bonnie asked casually.

"A lot." Enzo said not taking the bait.

"We talking months?" He said nothing. "Years?" She probed.

"Rinse." He said in lieu of an answer to her question.

Bonnie put herself directly under the spray of water allowing Enzo to rinse the cleanser out of her hair with his fingers. Her natural curls were tighter and more defined than the loose waves Enzo was used to seeing her wearing. He found this look just as appealing if not more. She was just beautiful anyway.

"Not giving anything away huh?" Bonnie said not giving up.

"What exactly do you want to know Bonnie?" He rarely called her by her first name unless he was being serious.

She turned to face him. "When did you… start to get… you know… interested in me?" She asked.

He poured some shower gel into his hands and started rubbing it over her shoulders neck and arms. "I've always noticed that you're attractive even when you were with what's-his-name, that Gilbert kid."

Bonnie smirked knowing full well Enzo knew the boy's name. "Jeremy." Bonnie announced noticing the slightly aggravated twitch in Enzo's face at the mention of the boy's name.

He continued as he massaged shower gel around her waist and hips. "I think I really started to notice you around the time Julian was around."

"When you were in love with Lily." She teased him.

"I wasn't in love with her." He stated without hesitation.

"What the hell was that about then?" Bonnie queried.

"She was good to me when no one else was." Enzo replied.

Bonnie opened her mouth to make a sarcastic remark regarding Lily when it occurred to her that if her friends found out that she was exchanging body fluids with Enzo she'd face the same kind of judgement he did with regard to his feelings (whatever the hell they were) for Lily and Bonnie would give a similar answer to the one that he did.

"My turn." She said taking the shower gel and lathering up Enzo's chest, arms and abs. "When did you know you wanted something to happen with us?" She looked up at him anticipating his answer.

He looked away and tried to hide a smile. "New Year's Eve." He answered knowing what would come next.

"Why the hell didn't you kiss me then?" She responded as he expected.

"Did you even know what you wanted then?" Enzo asked her. She couldn't answer him. "I didn't know for sure if you were drunk, horny or just lonely. I couldn't risk taking advantage of that." He kept the part about not wanting to get his feelings hurt to himself. But it was obvious that what they were doing now was serious.

She said softly and sincerely, "I don't get involved with guys on a whim and I'd rather be on my own than be with the wrong guy just cause I'm lonely."

"I know." He responded just as sincerely. "And I think we've both been through enough in life to know that neither one of us is playing games. I wouldn't be here with you like this right now if I didn't believe it was a big deal."

The depth of what he was saying left her speechless. So instead of speaking she cupped his face in her hands and stood up on her tip toes to kiss him in a way that would express to him how deeply she felt for him. He placed his hands on her back sliding them down to cup her ass and pull her closer.

"You're still turned on after all that talking?" She said into his ear as she felt his hardness growing against her belly.

"Aren't you?" He teased her.

She looked at him then gave him one of her tongue twisting kisses before pouring shower gel into her hands and rubbing it into the cheeks of his behind. He just watched her, trying to contain his smile. When she brought her hands around to stroke his erection he bit his bottom lip and his head fell back. Bonnie alternated and twisted her hands like a corkscrew from the base to the tip of his shaft. Enzo didn't understand how a girl who appeared to be quite innocent sexually (having only had one boyfriend) could kiss like a pro, move her hips like a pro and massage his dick like a pro. And since he didn't actually want to even think about her with another man all he could do was enjoy her moves, which, at now involved twisting one hand up and down his length while circling the tip with the palm of her other hand. This had to stop or he was going to explode embarrassingly too soon. So, he pulled her hands away from his member, kissed each of her palms and turned her so that her back was against his front. After pouring shower gel into his hands he massaged her breasts with his palms which led to her rubbing her delectable backside against his rock hard penis. Not helpful in trying to avoid shooting his load prematurely, so he put one arm around her waist to hold her still and the other between her thighs. He kissed, licked and sucked her neck and her shoulders from behind her while using his fingers to massage her clit.

"Enzo…" She murmurmed in the sweetest, sexiest voice he'd ever heard.

What else could he do but answer, "Yes, beautiful." He cooed to her in a hoarse voice.

"You need to be inside me right now." She demanded softly.

Without hesitation he turned her around to face him, backed her against the wall of the shower and lifted her up so she could wrap her legs around him.

"Holy shit that wall is cold!" She yelped.

They both laughed and he kissed her as he guided himself into her opening. They both sighed as she slid down his length slowly. This time was slow and sensual as he rocked into her while looking into her eyes. The wall was slippery and she held onto him tightly. He wouldn't let her fall. The tension increased and his strokes became deeper but he still took his time. Suddenly, the water went ice cold. The shock had them both cursing before Enzo switched off the water and they got out. He quickly dried Bonnie's skin then his own with a towel to remove the chill. Bonnie crawled onto the bed on her hands and knees unintentionally giving Enzo the best nude show ever. He admired her juicy backside until she turned around kneeling on the bed to watch him practically with his tongue hanging out.

"Get over here!" Bonnie demanded.

He didn't need to be asked twice as he crawled on the bed to join her. As soon as he got on the bed she had him on his back, straddled by her thighs while she slid down onto his still rock hard erection.

"Impressive." She observed. "The cold clearly has no effect on your ability stand to attention."

"That's because you're the one demanding my attention." He responded smoothly.

"You have an answer for everything don't you." Bonnie said as she began to slide up and down his length.

This time he just smiled and kept his mouth shut, mainly because the pleasure she was giving him rendered him temporarily speechless. Again, he didn't get how this seemingly less experienced young woman had the ability to dance on his dick in a way that took away all rational thought. Wanting to be closer to her he sat up while she was still on top of him and wrapped his arms around her waist. Her breasts were at the perfect level for him to tease her nipples with his tongue while she did amazing things with her hips and her internal feminine muscles. Each time he sucked one of her nipples into his mouth her internal muscles clenched and he thought he might come. When it became too much for him he flipped her onto her back and slowed the pace returning to a slow, deep grind as he kissed her beautiful mouth. Her breathing quickened as he put his arm under one of her thighs and used the other hand to stroke her face while kissed her. They could feel the tension building more and more. Limbs started to tingle, muscles became tight, Enzo rocked even more deeply into Bonnie until they both tensed up and shattered with release. He continued to kiss her until she couldn't breathe and had to break away from his mouth to gasp for air. Then everything became peaceful and something in the air had changed. They gazed at each other for several seconds saying with their eyes what they weren't ready to say with their mouths. They shared another kiss before they crawled under the bed covers. Enzo wrapped himself around Bonnie spooning her, protecting her. They couldn't predict the future but in that moment they felt safe as if nothing could touch them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for the reviews and thank you to all of the other Bonenzo writers on this site as you all entertained and motivated me with your wonderful stories. Bonnie and Enzo's relationship is so inspiring and I'm trying to keep them as close to their characters on TVD as possible so I appreciate any feedback on that. It's the first time I've written in years and I'm new to putting my work on the website so please bear with me. This fic was meant to be just a few scenes but let's see what happens. This part has a little more angst, but I've tried to keep the flirtation and humour. Enjoy!**

 **Part 3: Confession**

Bonnie was on the phone in tears of laughter listening to the story that Caroline was telling her about her night, one of the few nights out she'd had in a long time since having the twins.

"I swear Bon. It was so embarrassing. I felt like compelling everyone there to forget the whole night." Caroline told her.

"How does a vampire even get drunk?" Bonnie asked still laughing.

"I have no idea. We can't get hangovers and that drunk feeling only last for a short amount of time. I guess when you spend the night drinking shots of Tequila after years of rarely having a glass of wine at dinner once a week for a few years it takes your body time to adjust." Caroline replied. "All I wanted was to celebrate my promotion, bond with some females over the age of 2 and instead I end up accidently flashing a bar full of people and getting carried out of the place by security. My boss is gonna lose her shit when she finds out."

"I think you're gonna have to compel her to get out of this one." Bonnie suggested.

"Yeah, I think you're right. I was trying to avoid having to go down that route for any reason since the girls were born but I guess sometimes it's necessary for survival. Well for my career in this case. I really love my job, Bon."

"Well, I'm really happy for you with the promotion and everything. You deserve it." Bonnie congratulated her friend. Although admittedly she felt a little sad about the fact that any plans that she could have made for her own career were currently ruined because of the Armory trying to hunt her down like she was some magical bounty and not a human being with actual thoughts and feelings. Bonnie was contemplating psychology or counselling as a career route while she was in college. She was always helping everyone around her in some way, shape or form anyway, so at the time she thought why not get paid to help people's minds. Still, when (or if) she finally escaped whatever plans the Armory had for her she could still pursue her dreams.

"How are things with Enzo? He doesn't seem to have done anything to piss you off in a while." Caroline asked.

Bonnie smiled to herself. "Fine." She replied nonchalantly. "We're getting along ok." If only Caroline knew just how well they were getting along.

"Mmmhmm." Caroline responded. "Well, at least he's able to keep you company sometimes. And as long as he's keeping you safe that's all that matters."

Bonnie had a feeling Caroline suspected her and Enzo were closer than Bonnie wanted to admit and Bonnie really wanted to spill all the details but she wasn't quite ready. She just wanted to enjoy the honeymoon period for the time being. Suddenly the sound of a toddler screaming in the background on Caroline's end of the line pierced Bonnie's ears.

"Ok Bon. I have to go. Looks like my little angels are fighting over a doll." Caroline explained.

"Ok, bye Care. Kiss the girls for me."

"Will do. See ya."

Angels, Bonnie laughed to herself. The twins were adorable, but they had Caroline and Alaric wrapped around their little fingers. Bonnie admired the way Caroline had adapted to motherhood so easily. What kind of mother would she herself be? Better than her own mother that's for sure. If it wasn't for her Gram's God knows how Bonnie would have turned out. She had no idea how her parents even ended up together and what the hell ever possessed them to bring a child into the world. Her mother was a free spirit , always on some adventure with the maternal instincts of a piece of wood. Her dad was a workaholic, hardly ever there. Grams was Bonnie's saviour and protector. She missed her so much.

Bonnie walked over to stand and look out of the window at the side of the fireplace. She felt down. Enzo hadn't been back in 3 days. She missed him, she missed her friends and she missed Grams more than anything. She missed her parents too. Despite the fact that they were hardly ever around they had still been her family at one point, she still had some good memories of them. It's more than Enzo ever had. She really felt it for him. Crazy how a man who was abandoned by everyone and had no love in his life, could treat her like a queen. Neither of them had said those three little words yet but the feeling was there between them constantly. They'd only gotten together three weeks ago. It was too soon to say it Bonnie thought. She sighed. She didn't know how long she stood there gazing out of that window when she felt a warm drop of liquid fall down her cheek, then another. Tears. Her tears. She didn't want to break down but in this moment she felt alone and a little bit lost. She couldn't make plans for her future. Not yet. All she wanted was for Enzo to come back and make her forget all the bullshit in her life. As if some divine being was answering her prayers Enzo walked through the door.

As soon as he saw her Enzo got the same feeling of peace, 'home' and desire he always got when he saw her. She had her back turned to him standing at the window. Bonnie's curly hair was up in a ponytail and in her light blue jeans and cream coloured, off the shoulder, short sleeved crop top she looked ethereal. He walked up behind her to wrap his arms around her waist.

"Hello, Beautiful. Did you miss me?" Enzo asked Bonnie.

"Yeah." She said in a broken voice.

He walked around to face her. He could see she'd been crying. He stroked the tracks of her tears with his thumbs. "What's wrong?" He asked.

She shook her head and shrugged. "Just one of those days I guess."

He took her by the hand and led her towards the couch then took off his jacket and sat down pulling her into his lap sideways. He wrapped his arms around her tightly as she put her feet up on the couch.

"Talk to me." He said.

"I just miss everyone. And I feel… I feel lost. I mean you know I'm happy I have you right now but… what the hell am I gonna do with my life?" Bonnie told him about her conversation with Caroline.

"How does a vampire get drunk?" He asked as she did at that part of the story.

"I know right." She went on to explain how she felt about her parents and career plans.

"I just figured by now I'd at least be on the verge of starting a career, maybe getting ready to settle down, planning to have children. Not like my parents set the best example but still… is that too much ask… to have a normal life?" She said to him.

He felt for her. She deserved everything she wanted.

"Look, firstly I'm sure your parents loved you, even if they didn't always show it…" He started.

"I'm sorry, I know you didn't have your parents…"

"Don't worry about that…" He interrupted. "You deserve to have it all love." What she said worried him a little since he couldn't necessarily give her everything she wanted. She must have sensed it because she turned the subject of conversation to him.

She interlinked her fingers with his then turned to look at him and smiled. "What did you want… before you turned?"

"Same as you. You know I've always wanted a family and since I didn't have one to start with I'd have to create my own." He replied lifting one of his hands to stroke her hair.

"What career did you want?" She asked.

"Maybe a musical instrument maker or a musician." He replied.

"Yeah, I could see that."

"What do you want now?" Bonnie asked him.

"Right now?" He said, stroking her thigh and raising his eyebrows at her.

"Trust you to turn it into something rude." She laughed.

He laughed with her before answering. "Just you."

They stared at each other before moving in for a soft, slow kiss. It started out innocently but their chemistry was too potent for it to stay that way. Enzo started fidgeting underneath Bonnie.

"What are you… ? Ughhh." She said with a smile feeling the bulge against her butt and thighs.

"We missed you." Enzo said with a saucy smile.

"Who is we?" Bonnie asked him.

He looked down in the vicinity of his nether regions.

"There is something seriously wrong with you." She mocked.

"This coming from the person who cuts off someone's hand." He mocked in return.

"Yeah, sorry about that. To be honest though, you deserved it. You were acting like a dick at the time. And now you know not to mess with me!" She said proudly.

It wasn't the first time that incident had been mentioned in jest between the two of them. On one occasion Enzo bought Bonnie the wrong brand of Cranberry juice. She was having a bad day and blew up at him about it, so in jest he said, "Sorry, I won't make the same mistake again, you might cut off my hand or something!" To which they both burst out laughing. The morbid joke cheered her mood up for the rest of the day.

"You're right love… must be something seriously wrong with me to still want you after you dismember me with no remorse and threaten to do it again if I piss you off." He said.

"I guess you love it." She joked.

"Right, cause how can you not fall for a girl who cuts off uour hand to save her best friend." He said before he could stop himself. The cat was out of the bag, he hadn't meant to verbalise exactly how he felt for her so soon. Maybe she wouldn't realise exactly what he meant.

"Did you just confess that you love me?" Bonnie teased him with a coy smile.

He didn't answer but looked down shyly. He was flustered. Not a good look on a confident, sometimes cocky grown man. He hadn't felt this way since Lily's party when Bonnie 'fixed' his tie, or New Year's Eve when he pulled her back up from the dip during their dance. Suddenly his confidence returned and he realised there was no point in playing games.

"Yeah. I did. I do." He said, basically admitting that he was 'whipped'.

Bonnie said nothing. Now she looked as flustered as he did. She looked anywhere but at him.

"You wanted an answer and now you have it you go all shy?" Enzo said to her.

"I kinda didn't expect you to admit it." She responded.

"Well look, I don't expect you to say it back right now…"

"I do too." She told him before he could finish his sentence.

He looked at her waiting for more. "You 'do too' what?" He wanted to punish her a little for getting him flustered.

"You're gonna make me say it aren't you?" She said embarrassed.

"It's my revenge for your constant teasing."

"I feel the same way." She finally admitted.

"Are you confessing that you love me Bonnie Bennett?" She said nothing, so he tickled her.

"I just said I did didn't I!" She replied while fidgeting as he tickled her. "God, you guys and your egos!"

"Come here." He said holding her face in his hands and kissing her with complete confidence. Ending the kiss he leaned his forehead against hers and brushed her nose with his while still looking into her eyes. He used his thumbs to stroke her cheeks and his gaze became a little melancholy.

"What?" Bonnie asked him concerned.

"What you said about wanting children." Enzo replied.

"There are plenty of children in the world who need adopting."

"You wouldn't want to have your own children?" He queried.

"Yeah. But I would've considered adoption even if I could have my own children. Making a child doesn't make someone a good parent. Trust me, I know that and so do you. Children need to be loved and nurtured. If I didn't have Grams who knows where I'd be. Look at Caroline and the girls…" Enzo admired Bonnie for thinking the way she did, but a part of him still felt guilty that he couldn't 'make' children with her and that she'd be willing to sacrifice that for him. He loved her even more though for even suggesting the option of adopting a child with him. How the hell that would work with him being a vampire and her being a witch he didn't know, but he allowed himself to indulge in the fantasy for now.

"See, this exactly why I love you. " Enzo told her. "And if we could 'make' our own children we'd have a football team." He added.

"Are you crazy!" She said shocked.

"I think we've already established that I am."

"Can you imagine us going to an adoption agency?" Imitating a Social Worker Bonnie said, "So what skills do you have that would make you good parents?" Providing the answer she would give she said, "He's a vampire so he can compel them to always be on their best behaviour and I'm a witch so I can use protection spells to keep them safe for life." They laughed together." Well, that's if I have my magic back at that point." Bonnie added.

In a serious tone Enzo said, "That's the other elephant in the room…immortal vampire… mortal witch…"

"Not that I'm trying to avoid that conversation all together, but how about for now we just enjoy where we are and what we have . We've only just admitted that we've fallen for each other so I think we can save the mortality discussion for another time." Bonnie told him.

"Good idea." He agreed.

Without a doubt if Enzo could take the cure for vampirism he would. He'd already lived one lifetime plus, which had provided him with nothing but emptiness. Now he had the chance at a second lifetime with Bonnie. She was feeling more and more like his family every day and regardless of the obstacles of aging and conceiving children he already loved her so much that just the two of them for the next 60 years or so would be enough for him. He'd try to keep her happy and fulfilled in any way that he could. And when she was gone, not a thought he liked to dwell on, he believed he'd be able to say he'd done all he needed to do on this earth too. Immortality wasn't necessarily the gift people thought it was. There was something much more meaningful and fulfilling to him about living one 80 year or so lifetime then resting in peace, rather than wandering the earth indefinitely, constantly having to move on and losing people along the way.

Playing with her ponytail Enzo moved in for another kiss. He rubbed Bonnie's thigh with his free hand and she wrapped her hands around his neck. She started doing that thing he liked with her tongue in his mouth again. He used the hand that had been playing with her hair to stroke her shoulders and her back. Lifting the back of her top he moved his fingers underneath it making small circles on the bare skin of her back. He moved the hand that was on her thigh up to her belly where he stroked her bare skin with his knuckles. He moved his hand further upwards over her top onto her breast. She moaned adding to his arousal. She turned to straddle him on the couch feeling his manhood bulging against her core. He held her thighs while she pushed her hands up and under the bottom of his t-shirt. She pushed the t-shirt up, removing it with his help. She ran her fingers down from his chest to his abs, causing him to shiver. Enzo took the hem of Bonnie's top between his fingers. He brushed her skin with his knuckles as he lifted the top up and off over her head. She looked at him like she was going to devour him, which he found deeply satisfying since he felt as if he could devour her most of the time. They kissed again and repositioned themselves so that they lay stretched out on the couch with Bonnie on top of Enzo. Their chests and thighs were pressed together firmly. They kissed again and Enzo pushed his hands into the back of her jeans cupping her butt.

Pulling away from her mouth he said, "What did we discuss about you wearing underwear when it's just the two of us?"

Bonnie rolled her eyes with a smile. "I didn't know you were coming. You better not rip my underwear off today though or…"

"Yeah, I know…you'll cut off my hand." He finished for her although that's not exactly how she was planning to end her sentence.

She laughed then got back to kissing him. He massaged her butt with his hands still in her jeans while pressing his hips up into hers. Then he removed his hands from her jeans to pull her thighs up so that she was straddling him. The groin to groin contact caused them to moan simultaneously. Bonnie leaned down and they kissed again while Bonnie unbuttoned his jeans and began to unzip them. Enzo's phone started to ring in his jacket which was at the other end of the couch.

"Ignore it." He told Bonnie, which she did, returning her focus to his mouth.

The phone stopped ringing but started again seconds later. They ignored it again. But soon after it stopped the ringing began again. They both sighed and Bonnie grunted with frustration. Sitting up abruptly Bonnie grabbed Enzo's jacket and shoved it towards him so he could answer the phone.

Pissed as hell at seeing Alex's name on the screen he pressed the answer button, answering as rudely as possible. "Yeah."

("What's with the attitude?") Bonnie heard Alex's voice through the speaker of the phone.

"Maybe I could just do with a day off." Enzo told her in an aggravated tone.

("Well considering your presence here at the Armory has been sporadic over the past few weeks I don't see what you're complaining about.")

"Working for the Armory is not the sole purpose of my existence Alex."

("We made a deal Lorenzo and I suggest you keep up your end of the deal if you still want answers about where you come from.")

"I'll be there as soon as I can." Enzo told Alex cutting off the call before she could say anything else.

At this point he couldn't give two shits about getting answers from the Armory. So far he'd been provided with very little information anyway, he'd do better looking for answers elsewhere. The only reason he had anything to do with them was to keep tabs on their search for Bonnie and keeping them as far away from her as possible.

Bonnie was beyond pissed off at the interruption. "That woman is a cock-blocker who needs to spend less time obsessing over collecting magical artifacts and controlling everyone's movements! Maybe then she could get laid and chill the fuck out for once!"

Enzo looked at her surprised by the obscenities but seeing the funny side of what she was saying. He couldn't help but find it arousing that Bonnie was so pissed off about their intimate moment being disrupted. Bonnie pissed off was a turn on period.

"Someone's frustrated." He said to her with a smile.

"Aren't you? And I'm not just talking about sex." She said still fuming.

"Look Bonnie, I know we can't spend as much time together as we'd like and you can't just go out and do normal things like shopping whenever you feel like it, but we have to do what we have to do for now. I can't let anything happen to you. Once we figure out exactly what it is that Alex wants from you and get you your freedom back I'll spend so much time making it up to you you'll get sick of me."

Bonnie smiled and kissed him. "I'm gonna hold you to that." She said.

"And I'll deliver." He promised her. "I have to go." He said with disappointment.

They stood up and walked to the door together as he put his jacket on. He wrapped her up in his arms tightly then kissed her long enough to last him until he could come back to her. He opened the door as he held one of her hands as she stood behind him, then he turned around and just looked at her as though he still couldn't believe he finally had her. He leaned down to kiss her again then made his way out of the door. Bonnie folded her arms and looked away from him. They both hated when he had to leave.

"Bonnie?" He said turning back he before reached his car.

She looked towards him from the doorway.

"When I come back you're gonna find out just how much I love you." He said with a wink.

She smiled at him and he continued to the car.

"Love you too." She said as he drove away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you again for the lovely reviews. These two are so inspiring I can't seem to stop writing about them. As you can see (hopefully) with each scene I'm trying to introduce more of a storyline and dialogue as I think I have a habit of including too much smut! This part of the story will be the longest so far so I'll probably post it over about 3 chapters. I don't want to give anything away, all will be revealed, so enjoy!**

 **Part 4.1: Date Night with a Twist**

Bonnie sat on the couch with her feet up going through some paperwork from the Armory. Of course, she wasn't actually taking in any of the information as she was too distracted by nostalgic thoughts about the places she used to go to and the things she used to do before the Armory encroached on her freedom. As much as she appreciated Enzo's 'protection' and him providing her with a safe place to stay sometimes the cabin felt like a prison. No. That wasn't completely true. The cabin was her home, well their home really even though Enzo couldn't be there with her most of the time. But it was cosy and comfortable and filled with their energy. Positive energy. It was Bonnie's situation that made her feel like she was in prison.

Hearing the door open Bonnie looked to see Enzo enter the cabin with a bag of groceries, which he placed on the breakfast table before coming to sit next to her. He attempted to kiss her on the mouth but she turned her head so that his kiss ended up on her cheek.

"What's wrong?" He asked her confused.

"Nothing." She said, not even looking at him now. She stood up and walked over to the breakfast table to start unpacking the groceries. Enzo stood, remaining by the sofa, not too impressed with being ignored by the woman he'd been pining for over the last two days that he'd been away from her. It was around 3 and a half months since they gave into their feelings and finally got together and they hadn't had an argument so far as a couple so he was perplexed.

"If I've done something wrong you need to tell me what it is." He told her.

"You haven't done anything wrong." Bonnie replied, still not looking at him as she unpacked the groceries and put them away in the kitchen.

Enzo walked over to her. Standing behind her at the kitchen counter he put his hand on hers to halt her movements.

"Stop." He said, gently turning her around to look at him. With his hands now on her shoulders he asked, "What's going on?"

She looked at him for several seconds before answering. "I'm sorry." She sighed. "You haven't done anything. I just need to escape for a while. You know how much I appreciate everything you do for me. It's just hard not being able to go wherever I want, whenever I want." She explained.

"I understand. And I promise that as soon as we work things out with the Armory I'll take you all over the world if that's what you want." Enzo reassured her.

That earned him a smile from Bonnie.

"I need you to do something for me…" Enzo began. "Don't shut me out when you're feeling like this. Talk to me. Ok?" He requested.

"Ok." Bonnie answered. "Just wish I could get out and enjoy a little bit of freedom. I mean we have no idea how much longer it's gonna be before we figure out how to put an end to this shit with the Alex and the Armory."

"I know and I'm sorry love. If I hadn't got you involved with the Armory then you wouldn't be here stuck like a prisoner."

"Well, technically if Matt hadn't got you involved with the Armory neither of us would be where we are now. But I'm not gonna hold that against him, especially since it got us together." She said to him.

"True. But to be honest I think you and me getting together was inevitable."

"How?" She questioned.

He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him. "All that sexual tension between us… something had to happen eventually."

Now that she was slightly more relaxed Enzo moved in for a kiss. He teased her lips with his before hungrily feasting on her mouth for a minute or two. The kiss left Bonnie breathless and feeling a hell of a lot better than she had been 5 minutes ago.

"I'm gonna run you a bath." Enzo offered. "See if we can relax you some more."

Bonnie watched him make his way to the bathroom grateful that she finally had someone who always put her and her needs first. It wasn't one sided, she would do anything for him too. They were equals despite their differences and she looked forward to travelling the world with him once her life returned to normal, whatever that was.

The warm ylang ylang scented water soothed Bonnie's skin and helped to clear her head. She dozed as she lay with her back against Enzo's chest in the bath that they were sharing. The cradle of his legs around hers and the stroking of his fingertips along her arms provided a beautiful intimate connection without the necessity of going 'all the way'. She was too relaxed to move at the current moment anyway.

"If you could go anywhere right now where would you go?" Enzo asked her.

"Paris. Or maybe Hawaii." She answered.

"How about somewhere closer to home?" He queried.

"Hmmm…New York." Bonnie replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I went with my Dad when I was 15 for a vacation, well for him it was more to do with work but he called it a vacation. Grams was there too. Lame as it sounds Grams and I had so much fun since my Dad was preoccupied with work."

"Yeah. What did you do there?"

"Visit the usual landmarks, go to restaurants, see movies. We saw Cats on Broadway."

"Any good?"

"To be honest I couldn't get past the concept of people dressed up like cats so I kinda found it funny, but Grams loved it.

Enzo laughed then said, "There's nothing lame about enjoying time spent with someone who cares about you."

"I know. I've always said I'd go back to New York, experience it as an adult." She told him.

"Guess we'll make that number one on our list of places to go when we travel the world then." He suggested.

"Definitely." Bonnie agreed.

Contemplating their conversation Enzo began to formulate a plan to give Bonnie a little bit of the freedom she deserved.

It was nearly 2 in the afternoon the next day. Bonnie lay in bed on her stomach with the blankets over her head. She heard the front door of the cabin open. Shortly after she heard Enzo enter the bedroom.

"What are you still doing in bed?" He asked crawling onto the bed next to her and pulling the covers off her head. He moved her hair off her neck before kissing her there.

"I'm still tired." She said groggily.

"Well get up, we're going out." He said.

"I don't wanna get up…wait what?" She asked.

"We're going out." He repeated.

She lifted herself up and turned to face him. "Where?" She questioned eyeing him suspiciously.

"It's a surprise."

"Seriously?" She began to get excited.

"Yes, seriously. Get moving, you're wasting precious time."

"What should I wear?"

"Definitely not sweatpants." Bonnie pursed her lips at him. He smiled and said, "Something nice but not too formal."

She was about to get out of the bed when she had a thought. "Is it safe? I mean there's no way anyone from the Armory will see us or know where we're going?"

"It's safe." He assured her. He highly doubted anyone could possibly spot them where they were going.

"Ok." Bonnie said jumping off the bed with a huge grin. She started to remove her shorts and vest as she made her way to the shower. She paused giving Enzo a sultry look over her shoulder before continuing into the bathroom.

"If you wanted me to join you all you had to do is ask?" He said jumping off the bed to follow her and stripping along the way.

An hour and a half later Enzo stood by the window at the side of the fireplace waiting for Bonnie.

"Nearly ready?" He shouted to her in the bedroom.

"Almost." She shouted back to him.

He was dressed in a black, button-down shirt and black trousers with black dress shoes. The weather wasn't too bad so he wouldn't bother with a jacket. Plus, being a vampire, jackets were for show more than anything else since he wasn't exactly going to freeze to death. The bedroom door opened and Enzo began to salivate at the sight of his woman, because this was no girl. All dressed up and looking like an ultra sexy but classy supermodel, Bonnie was wearing a tight, burgundy halter-neck dress that was just below the knee with matching burgundy stiletto heels. The outfit showcased her hourglass figure perfectly. The new additions her wardrobe were thanks to Caroline. Since they couldn't reveal the location of the cabin Enzo had set up a credit card and PO Box so that Caroline could get catalogues to Bonnie who would choose clothes, which Caroline would shop for using the card then take them to the PO Box for Enzo to collect and bring to Bonnie. It was also safer than Bonnie going out to shop herself.

Bonnie's lips were painted a deep red. Her wavy hair had a deep side part with one side clipped up behind her ear and the other side sweeping across her eyebrow. She looked like a goddess and Enzo knew he would have difficulty keeping his hands to himself for the rest of the day.

"Put your tongue away." Bonnie joked.

"I'm trying." Enzo replied as she walked towards him with a burgundy purse and a smart black leather jacket in her hands. She dropped them on the coffee table before she reached him then wrapped her arms around his neck to drop a light kiss on hi s mouth. Her perfume was intoxicating - vanilla, cinnamon and a hint of musk.

"Thank you." She said looking up at him. "You don't know how much this means to me."

He wrapped his arms around her waist. "You're welcome" He replied. "You look incredible by the way. And you smell so good I could eat you up." He said squeezing her close to him.

"Well thank you. But I'm not gonna let you mess up my hair, makeup or clothes with a quickie." She warned him. He pretended to sulk. She smiled. "I want my underwear to remain fully intact tonight. At least until we get home."

"See, I was gonna be good until you said that last part." He told her.

He quickly turned her around and lifted her onto the window ledge. Pushing her dress up her thighs he stood between her legs and pulled her closer to him ravishing her mouth, not caring that he would end up wearing her lipstick. He slid his hands under her butt relishing in the heat that radiated from her core for a few moments before gaining some self-control and reluctantly pulling away from her mouth. If he let things go too far they wouldn't leave the cabin and she needed to get out more than anything.

"You know. That colour really suits you." Bonnie teased Enzo, referring to the red lipstick that was smeared all over his mouth.

He smiled at her before saying, "Ok, let's get going before we waste any more time."

They had been driving for around 2 hours. Bonnie was just relieved to have some new scenery to view.

"How exactly have you managed to escape from the Armory for so long today? Isn't Alex gonna be suspicious?" Bonnie asked.

"Not that I give a shit anymore, but she's basically been having a bad week. Everyone's been complaining about how much of a tyrant she is. People have been threatening to walk. A few have and she overheard people taking the piss out of her yesterday. So, she's keeping a low profile and been a little bit more laid back." Enzo explained with a completely 'over it' attitude.

"They must've said something really bad for her to take it so hard. I didn't think that woman had any emotions." Bonnie said. Enzo nodded in agreement.

Bonnie hadn't really noticed the road signs during the drive since she'd spent the journey dozing off, chatting to Enzo, enjoying the scenery and imagining what plans he had in store. But, as they approached another road sign she noticed that it mentioned New York City.

"We're going to New York?!" She asked excitedly.

"Maybe." Enzo responded.

"We're going to New York aren't we?!" She repeated with a huge smile.

Enzo tried to keep her in suspense for a few seconds longer but it was pointless. "Yes." He answered.

"I can't believe you'd do this for me!" Bonnie said in awe.

"You deserve it love."

She got all emotional then and found she was speechless. Enzo noticed her silence. He looked at her then smiled and took her hand in his. She managed to smile back at him wondering how a man she once despised had become the one person who would do anything to make her happy.

TO BE CONTINUED…


	5. Chapter 5

**The reviews are really appreciated, so thank you. I'm very excited to put this part of Bonenzo's story out there. Just trying to fill in the gaps that TVD couldn't give us. Bonnie and Enzo might be getting a little bit out of character now, but since there's so much angst on the show maybe it's just that we're used to seeing everyone stressed and it's rare that we see them any other way.**

 **Not sure how much further I'll take their story, but I really hope you enjoy the next few chapters!**

 **Part 4.2: Date Night with a Twist**

Once they arrived in New York Enzo parked his car in a high rise car park. It was easier to park and ride in New York with all the traffic and potential for getting lost with so many streets. He planned to use taxis, thinking that Bonnie might find the subway claustrophobic after spending so much time confined in the cabin. As he walked around to the passenger side she got out of the car before he could open her door for her. She pushed him gently against the side of the car leaning into him while she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Can't wait to see what we're doing this evening. Thank you." She said giving him a sensual gaze.

"You're welcome love." He replied.

Enzo looked down at her more than a little turned on by the way she was pressing into him. His hands were around her waist and he couldn't help sliding them down her butt giving her cheeks a little squeeze. Luckily no one else was around. With vamp speed he spun her around so she was now the one pressed up against the car. He had his hands around her waist again. He slid one hand down her thigh. Lifting up her dress he stroked the bare skin on the inside of her thigh using his knuckle, he then brushed it over her underwear causing her to sigh at the light pressure against her 'lower lips'.

"Thought we agreed you'd try and keep your hands to yourself 'til later." She told him breathlessly, gripping his shoulders.

Pressing kisses into the crook of her neck as he enjoyed her scent he said, "We agreed I wouldn't rip off your underwear 'til later." He kissed her shoulder moving his hand back to her thigh and lifting it up against his leg slightly. "Don't worry love. I'm just warming you up for later." He said putting her dress back in place then walking away from her. "Come on." He said turning around to put his hand out to her.

Still leaning against the car shivering with arousal, Bonnie gave him a look that said, _you bastard!_ She went to him taking his hand. He was very pleased with himself. He loved teasing her and there was nothing better than dragging things out with verbal and subtle physical foreplay for hours on end, until the time came when they could get down to business and end their night with sex so intense that they would go up in flames. 

It was just before 6:30pm and still daylight as Enzo led Bonnie along the streets of New York holding her hand tightly in his. She was mesmerised as she took in the scenery. It was like being on the set of a movie. It was so unreal, but amazing. They approached a classy Latin American restaurant. As they entered the building Enzo told the maitre d that they were Mr and Mrs Smith and that they had a reservation for 6:30pm.

"You actually made a reservation?" Bonnie queried surprised.

"What did you think I was gonna do, compel the staff?" He whispered to her.

"Well, yeah." She replied.

He just laughed.

She was impressed. He'd really gone all out. The maitre d led them to a window seat, attempting to pull out Bonnie's chair for her after she removed her jacket, but Enzo took over, making sure she was comfortable before he took his own seat.

"I'm really glad we have a window seat." Bonnie said.

"Yeah?" Enzo responded.

"Yeah. After being cooped up for so long I'll take every chance I can get to see what's going on outside of four walls." She told him.

When the waiter took their drink orders Bonnie declined Enzo's first offer of champagne. After experimenting with cocktails out of boredom at the cabin they were now her drink of choice. She opted for a Cuba Libre while Enzo still ordered a bottle of champagne. They agreed that Bonnie would share some of the champagne with him after her cocktail.

The food was amazing. They shared creamy corn empanadas for a starter, then Bonnie had tequila-chipotle shrimp tostadas for her main course, while Enzo chose rum glazed pork skewers with coconut rice. They were now sharing a POM sorbet for dessert. Bonnie was purposely teasing Enzo. Leaning with one elbow on the table she showed him some cleavage. She dipped the spoon into the dessert, then, looking into his eyes she put the spoon in her mouth slowly. Pulling it out even more slowly, she repeated the action before offering some to him.

"Want some?" She asked innocently.

He watched her with hooded eyes. He put his hand around hers guiding the dessert into his mouth. When he was finished she got some more dessert on the spoon, still giving him eye contact she put it into her mouth, this time licking the spoon afterwards. Enzo swallowed hard. She licked her lips and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He needed something to cool him down before he did something inappropriate to Bonnie on top of the table in the restaurant. He looked away from her smiling and downed his glass of champagne. He heard her laughing at him quietly. His cell-phone began to ring and to be honest he was grateful for the distraction, until he took out the phone and saw Alex's name on the screen. He considered ignoring it, but Alex had calmed down over the last few days so whatever she wanted he'd just make up some excuse.

"It's Alex, I'm just gonna take this." He informed Bonnie.

She nodded at him in understanding. The reception was bad so he gestured that he needed to leave their table to take the call. He was away for just a few minutes and as soon as he returned he saw some dark-haired, blue-eyed Damon look-a-like sitting in his seat putting the moves on his girl. He wasn't surprised. Since they'd arrived in the city Bonnie had been getting a lot of attention. He wasn't happy about all of the looks she was receiving, but he wasn't about to spoil their evening by going all caveman and knocking people out shouting "MINE!". Bonnie was a sweet person, but she'd really come into her own and if this guy pushed her too far she'd tear him a new asshole even without her magic. The guy put his hand on Bonnie's knee. _Too far_ , Enzo thought to himself and without thinking he walked over, put his hand firmly on the man's shoulder and warned him, "You have 10 seconds to get your hand off my girl's leg before I rip your throat out mate."

The guy turned to look at Enzo as if he was about to say something, but he paused, then turned to look at Bonnie. She raised her eyebrows in a way that said, _he's not kidding!_ The guy stood up and walked away without saying a word as if Enzo had compelled him, which he hadn't. It was just the deadly calm tone of his voice and 'potential psycho' look in his eyes that made the man decide he didn't want to lose his life tonight.

"Check you out with the terrifying, jealous boyfriend stance." Bonnie said in appreciation.

Still pissed with the man Enzo said, "I know you're not into men fighting over you, but I can't stand disrespectful dickheads who think they can put their hands on a woman like that."

"I'm not complaining. I can take care of myself, but I'm not gonna lie… THAT. Was kind of a turn on." Bonnie admitted.

She got a brief smile out of him.

"Shall we get the bill?" He asked.

"Sure." She replied.

Not that he was typically the jealous type but Enzo hoped he wouldn't have to spend the rest of the evening defending Bonnie's honour, because if he was pushed far enough someone was bound to get seriously fucked up, or possibly end up dead. 

After their meal Bonnie and Enzo went to a huge movie theatre.

"What's it gonna be then?" Enzo questioned as they stood inside looking at the movie listings on the screens. They both enjoyed horror movies but tonight was about fun and leaving the supernatural world behind, so Bonnie chose a comedy. Once they paid for the film Enzo went to get some snacks while Bonnie stood in the lobby looking out of the window onto the streets which were now lit by bright street lights. On the way back to her Enzo saw a tall, caramel-skinned man talking to Bonnie. _Not a-bloody-gain!_ He thought to himself. The man shook Bonnie's hand then kissed it. _What the fuck?!_ Enzo thought. Using vamp hearing as he continued over to her he heard Bonnie tell the man:

"He's treating me this evening. It was a surprise. We just went to a Latin American restaurant, so not sure where we're going after this."

"There's a bar on…" The man began.

"Am I interrupting?" Enzo stood next to Bonnie looking at the man.

"No." Bonnie said turning to Enzo. "This is Jay." She said introducing the two men. Enzo just nodded at him in greeting.

"Your girl is stunning." Jay said.

"I know." Enzo replied looking back at Bonnie who returned his gaze.

"Loyal too." Jay added.

"I know." Enzo agreed not taking his eyes off her.

"Just giving you a heads up… Some of the guys can be pretty persistent around here, they're used to women passing out their numbers soon as her man's back's turned." Jay advised.

"Really." Enzo said sarcastically.

"Yeah. Anyway, you two have a good night." Jay said smiling at Bonnie.

"See ya." Bonnie replied while Enzo gave him a nod.

Enzo continued staring at Bonnie raising his eyebrows questioningly.

"What? I was just standing here minding my own business…" She began.

Enzo gave her a small smile. "I know." He said.

They made their way across the lobby to go and see the movie. _God help me if this is going to carry on for the rest of the evening._ He thought with regard to all the attention his woman was getting in New York City. 

They didn't see much of the movie spending most of their time making out like a couple of teenagers in heat.

"So what's next?" Bonnie enquired as they exited the movie theatre.

Enzo had his arm around her waist. Leading her to the kerb he said, "Wait and see." He hailed a cab leaving her in suspense.

The happy expression on Bonnie's face as they stood in front of the horse and carriage at Central Park hit him right in the gut.

"Am I in a fairy-tale or something?" She said to him with a quizzical look on her face.

"Or something." He replied. "But every Queen deserves a carriage so…" He gestured towards it.

Bonnie took a deep breath, staring at him before he helped her get in and followed.

Bonnie sat sideways in the carriage with her shoes off and her legs across Enzo's lap. He rested his hands on her legs as they enjoyed the scenery. It was soothing riding around the park at night. Quieter than the streets of the city. Just peaceful and calm. Too good to be true almost. Enzo was momentarily pulled into some dark thoughts.

Although his life wasn't exactly perfect right now it was better than it had ever been. He finally had a place to call home even though he couldn't be there all of the time, but at least he had someone to come home to. Someone who was happy to see him and appreciated him. Someone who genuinely cared about what he needed and wasn't just using him for their own purposes. Bonnie must have sensed his thoughts as she touched his face.

"Hey." She said gazing at him with concern. "Where are you?" She said referring to his sombre expression.

"I'm here." He answered.

"You sure?" She asked.

"Yeah." He assured her.

"Tonight has been amazing." She told him. "Don't worry about anything else for now ok." He didn't say anything so she poked him in the thigh with her foot saying, "Ok?"

"Yeah." He said quietly

"Didn't quite hear that." She prodded him in the leg with her foot again.

"I said yes." He told her, tickling her foot then.

"Hey…" She laughed. He did it again. "Stop."

"Stop what? This?" He said doing it again.

"Please…Stop…" She said laughing as he continued while she fidgeted .

"Ok." He said, finally stopping.

Bonnie moved closer to him keeping her legs on his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck. He rested his head on her shoulder tucking his face into her neck, taking in her scent as they enjoyed the rest of the carriage ride together. 

As they strolled along the sidewalk when they were back in the city Bonnie's pace became slower and a little unsteady.

"You ok love?" Enzo asked her.

"Yeah. My feet just hurt. Guess it wasn't such a good idea wearing four inch heels tonight." She said.

"Hold on." He instructed.

Crouching down he helped her take her shoes off. Bonnie held the shoes in her hands then Enzo picked her up throwing her over his shoulder caveman style, eliciting a shocked gasp from Bonnie. He began walking again.

"Oh my God, Enzo!" She exclaimed. "Just so romantic aren't you!" She said with sarcastic humour.

"Want me to put you down." He said. Not caring about the amused stares they were receiving from passing pedestrians. He loved getting a reaction out of her.

"No. But come on, I'm losing my dignity here." She informed him.

He let her slip down suddenly. She gasped thinking that he was about to drop her, but he caught her in his arms so that he was now carrying her bridal-style.

"Satisfied?" He asked her with a sly grin.

"Better." She replied, relieved that he hadn't shamed her further with the usual smack to the behind.

As he continued to walk with her in his arms Bonnie spotted a bar advertising an open mic night. The blues-style music emanating from the place sounded appealing and she thought it was something Enzo might enjoy too.

"Hey, stop for a minute." She requested. "You wanna go in there?" She asked him, nodding towards the bar.

"A karaoke bar?" He mocked.

She tsked at him. "It's not a karaoke bar, it's open mic night." She corrected. "Maybe you could get in there and perform." She suggested.

"Hmmm…" He responded twisting his mouth. "Don't know about me performing but yeah we can go inside."

She could tell he was more interested in the bar than he was willing to let on. She wanted him to enjoy everything about their date as much as she did. He put her down and helped her put her shoes on, then they went inside. 

They were settled in seats near the side of the low stage. Bonnie sipped on her second long island iced tea since they arrived, while Enzo enjoyed a cold beer. It was slightly chilly due to the air conditioning so Bonnie had kept her jacket on. The place was cozy. The lighting was low and warm and the walls were decorated with original looking artwork. Tea-light candles decorated each table, giving the place a laid-back, down-to-earth feel. It was a relaxed atmosphere with a multicultural crowd. The unknown artists performed everything from blues to jazz to reggae to indie and soft rock ballads. Most of the performers were amazing, some not so much. But all in all it was an enjoyable experience.

While there was a break in the perfomances Bonnie struck up a conversation with Enzo.

"So you said before that you considered being a musician or an instrument maker." She queried.

"Yeah." He replied.

"What's stopping you?" She asked.

"Nothing really. Well I guess the musician idea is unrealistic being what I am." He answered referring to his vampire status. "Couldn't exactly become famous could I?"

"What, and not share that charisma with the world." She mad e him laugh with her sarcasm. "You could be a songwriter or a producer." She suggested more seriously.

"I wouldn't mind composing music. To be honest though I'm starting to think I'd make a better Private Investigator."

"Very true. You've had a lot of practice playing double agent. Plus you'd probably get more information about your family as a PI than the Armory can ever provide for you." She added.

"Definitely." He agreed.

"How about you? Still thinking about becoming Dr Bennett." He asked in reference to conversations they'd had regarding Bonnie's interest in psychology.

"Maybe." She told him. "Kinda thinking lately that maybe I could be a Probation Officer."

He raised an eyebrow in question.

"You're always telling me how bossy I am and everybody back in Mystic Falls used to see me as the' judgey' one. Plus I think I've had enough practice trying to keep people in line." She said, referring to her trip across Europe with Damon and Alaric. "Haven't exactly been 100% successful so far," she added without specifically stating Damon's name, "but it would be interesting."

"You'd be great." Enzo told her. "I think you secretly enjoy giving people a kick up the arse when they need it." He teased.

"I do don't I?" They laughed together.

As the next performer got on stage their conversation ended. It was always a pleasure having a normal conversation about potential future plans. For a moment it seemed like they were just a normal couple enjoying a typical night out. _Better make the most of it._ Bonnie thought. 

After listening to a hilariously terrible rendition of John Mayer's 'Gravity' Bonnie decided she wanted another drink. Talk about obliterating a good song! Holding in her laughter at the performer's ridiculous and unnecessary sexual gestures with the mic stand and rachet-like, off key voice had made her thirsty. Enzo stood to go and get the drink for her but she told him, "I'll go, I need to stretch my legs… and my stomach muscles after holding them in so long trying not to laugh at that guy."

Enzo laughed. He scanned the bar, still a little protective regarding Bonnie being approached by sleazy men, but it was quiet at the moment and it wasn't too far from where they were sitting near the side of the stage. So he handed her some cash and asked her to get him a beer while she was there. She picked up her purse and as she turned to go Enzo slapped her on the behind saying, "Thanks love."

Bonnie jumped at the action turning around. "What the hell! We're in public you know!"

"Don't care." He told her unapologetically but with a cheeky grin. "Couldn't resist it. And I think I've done pretty well keeping my hands to myself tonight."

"What, when you had your hand up my dress in the car park or when you were groping me during the movie?" She said sarcastically.

"Your underwear is still intact isn't it?" He said rebelliously.

She rolled her eyes before warning him. "And it better stay that way… until later."

She dodged another slap on the ass before laughing and walking towards the bar. Enzo watched her walk away feeling extremely proud to be with her and extremely pleased with himself for giving her a night to remember. And it wasn't over yet…

As if Bonnie had some magnetic aura that drew people to wherever she was the bar suddenly began to get crowded. Seeing a slightly inebriated guy in his twenties looking at Bonnie before walking closer to her, Enzo thought to himself _here we go again, someone definitely wants to die at my hands tonight_. He watched, anticipating the man's next move. Sure Bonnie could handle herself, and, Enzo had already played the jealous boyfriend more than once today, so he waited intently to see if the guy would push it far enough that he would have to end him. With his vamp hearing Enzo listened to the conversation.

"You're gorgeous, can I buy you a drink?" The stranger asked Bonnie.

"No thank you." She replied firmly to the stranger without looking at him.

"Can I take you home with me so we can have a drink there instead?" He persisted.

"That would be a hell no!" Bonnie told him.

The man was leering at Bonnie's breasts at this point and Enzo had to restrain himself from ripping the man's eyes out of his head. The final straw was when the sleaze touched Bonnie's hair. Seeing the disgusted look on her face Enzo made his way over to them trying to convince himself not to rip this person's head off. Maintaining some degree of control Enzo stood behind Bonnie putting one arm around her waist and moving her hair off her neck with his free hand before kissing her there. As he did this he looked directly into the man's eyes communicating that if he said one more word he'd leave the place in a body bag. That was all it took for the guy to get the hint and walk away without tempting fate. Enzo could handle another man approaching his girl with respect as long as they knew the boundaries and walked away once she said no or they discovered she wasn't single. But, he had no tolerance for disrespectful pricks who thought they could treat a woman like a piece of meat, especially when she was clearly not interested.

"You ok?" He asked Bonnie, standing in front of her stroking her face.

"Yeah." She smiled up at him. "You rescuing me from persistent guys is becoming a habit."

"This is what happens when you date an incredibly beautiful woman who doesn't realise how appealing she is." He replied.

Bonnie blushed slightly and rolled her eyes giving him an appreciative smile.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom. Can you get the drinks since I didn't get the chance?" She asked him.

"Sure." He said.

The bar was becoming more crowded and the staff appeared to be struggling. A blond haired man came out of a back room behind the bar to serve the people in Enzo's vicinity. He looked familiar. As the man got closer he made eye contact with Enzo confirming that they knew each other. _Oh shit!_ Enzo thought to himself.

"Enzo?" The man said. "Thought it was you when I saw you a while ago, but I wasn't sure since we're far from home. What are you doing in New York?"

"Just taking a break." Enzo replied trying to keep his cool. "What are you up to in New York? How long have you been in here tonight?"

"Same as you, I'm taking a break while I have the chance. Came up to see some family. It's my brother's bar so he called me for some help bartending tonight cause a few of his staff called in sick. I've been here about 20 minutes. That your girlfriend I saw you with before?" The man asked.

"Yeah." Enzo admitted, becoming more anxious.

"I couldn't really see her properly but looks like you did good." The man said, complementing Enzo's choice of girlfriend.

"Thanks. Anyway, I need to get back so I'll see you another time." Enzo said trying to escape while he had the chance.

"Didn't you want a drink?" The man reminded him.

"I'll leave it for now." Enzo told him ready to get away.

"Ok. We'll talk later. Introduce me to your girl before you go."

Enzo nodded in response but no way in hell was this man getting anywhere near Bonnie. He needed to find her fast. He went back to their seats which were luckily situated closer to the bathroom than they were to the bar. As soon as he saw Bonnie he approached her and led her back towards the bathroom.

Standing in the corridor he told her, "We have to go. Now."

"Why?" She asked him with a worried expression.

"I just saw someone I know." Enzo informed her. "He works for the Armory…"

TO BE CONTINUED…


	6. Chapter 6

**Part 4.3: Date Night with a Twist**

Bonnie couldn't believe what Enzo was telling her. Her heart began to race and she felt like she couldn't breathe. She felt sick. He obviously noticed the change in her demeanour as he put his hands on her shoulders to steady her.

"How is he here?" She asked with panic on her face.

"I'll explain later, but we need to go. Wait here."

Bonnie stood there frozen. Just her luck. The one time she had the chance to truly enjoy some freedom after the last few years of isolation and it was ruined. The Armory had fucked up her life and now in a place miles away from all the drama she was at risk of being captured by them. She felt like giving up. But then, the person who had kept her going all this time returned to protect her again like he had been doing for so long.

"Don't panic..." Always the best way to start a sentence when speaking to someone who was panicking. "But we have a slight problem." Enzo informed her. "The only ways to get out of here are by going past the bar and he'll see us easily since the place isn't too big and it's not that full. This guy is over-friendly and knowing him he'll stop us to talk when he sees us. We can't risk waiting for him to disappear either."

"Can't you just vamp speed us out of here." She asked desperate to leave.

"I could… But using vamp speed around a bunch of people especially one who works for the Armory isn't exactly the best plan. If he spots us he'll be on the phone to Alex in a second, they'll finally have a lead and we'll be on the run." He explained.

Bonnie knew he was right. She'd prefer to be able to go back to the safety of the cabin and hide out there than to move from place to place to avoid being found.

"What do we do?" She needed him to tell her that he had a plan that ended with them safe and home within the next few hours.

Enzo looked around. They heard someone coming. He grabbed her by the waist and quickly crowded her in against the wall so that she wouldn't be seen if the person they were trying to escape from came by. After several seconds a woman walked past them making her way from the bathroom back to the bar. Bonnie breathed a sigh of relief. Enzo looked down at her pressing his forehead against hers. He could still smell her perfume and he was aware of how her curves fit against his body. As inappropriate as it was their physical closeness was a turn on despite the current dangerous circumstances. Bonnie gave him a look that said, _are you serious right now?_ So he backed off. At least she was slightly calmer.

"Did the bathroom have windows?" He asked Bonnie.

"No." She answered.

Enzo scanned the area again. Their only other option was a door behind them and they had no idea what was in there. Enzo looked around again to make sure no one could see what they were doing and he tried the door. Locked of course, so with vamp strength he forced it open breaking the lock. He peeped inside to check what it was and if it was empty before taking Bonnie's hand and leading her inside the room with him. It was an office, thankfully with a window. Once they had stepped inside they both looked at the big desk in the room and then at each other. After a brief moment of sexual tension, as if reading each other's minds they said, "No," shaking their heads with a smile at the same time, indicating that this was definitely not a convenient time for an erotic interlude.

They walked over to the window and Enzo opened it. Luckily it was on the ground floor and opened sideways with enough room to get through without having to be a contortionist. He helped Bonnie putting his hand on her butt in the process.

"Do you have to right now?" She said with sarcasm and a little humour.

"Sorry love, it's the only way to get you out the window." He said with mock seriousness.

"Sure it is." She retorted as she continued through the small space landing safely on her feet outside.

Enzo followed. He took her hand and they began to walk. It was a quiet street with a few cars parked on the opposite side of the road. Suddenly they heard a door open. Bonnie jumped with surprise. Enzo's acquaintance from the Armory walked out of what must have been a back door in the bar a few feet away from them with a crate of empty bottles in his hands. Enzo's mind went blank and before he could even attempt to use vamp speed to get them out of there the man spoke.

"Hey Enzo, leaving so soon…" He said trailing off as he stared at Bonnie with recognition. "Is this Bonnie Bennett?"

Everyone at the Armory had been given Bonnie's profile with photographs so that they could easily recognise her upon sight. The man didn't get the opportunity to see her properly in the bar. But now that they were up close and the street lights were bright the shit was hitting the fan. Enzo needed a plan fast. The obvious plan was to kill the man but there were consequences. Disposing of the body, possibly security cameras showing him and Bonnie in the bar. Of course Bonnie wouldn't want him to just kill someone if there was another way, plus the guy was one of the few people Enzo actually had time for at the Armory. Everyone else was like a robot under Alex's control most of the time.

"Look Paul…" Enzo began, not knowing exactly what he was going to say. There was a very faint sound of police sirens in the distance.

"Sorry man, but I have to tell Alex." Paul informed him dropping the crate and reaching for his cell-phone.

Before Enzo could take a step towards him a silver Mercedes sped around the corner so fast that it swerved to the left up onto the kerb smashing into Paul so hard it sent his body flying up in the air where he then crashed into the wall of the building before dropping to the pavement in a mangled heap. The car barely paused before straightening its wheels and speeding off. Enzo had used vamp speed to push Bonnie away from the car and against the wall as soon as he saw it heading in their direction. She was shaking hard while staring at the grotesque scene a short distance away from them. Her breathing became quick and shallow.

She looked at him with shocked, wide eyes and said, "Do something."

Enzo heard the noise of the sirens getting closer. He looked at Paul's crumpled body then back at Bonnie. The easy option would be to leave him. There was no way he would survive his injuries anyway and Bonnie would be safer if he died. But she wouldn't forgive Enzo, or herself for not trying to help Paul even though the man had come this close to completely taking away her freedom and he couldn't put her through that. Enzo rushed over to Paul's body with vamp speed, knowing that what he was about to do was pointless. He bit into his wrist and put it to Pauls bleeding mouth to try and heal him. The sound of sirens got louder. He looked at Bonnie and shook his head indicating that nothing would save Paul now. He saw a tear fall down her face and gave up trying save a dead man.

"We have to go. " He told her as the sirens got even louder.

With vamp speed he removed them from the scene. They got a taxi to the parking lot where Enzo's car had been left and began the journey home. They were both quiet but not uncomfortable with each other, looking at one another once in a while but lost in their own thoughts.

Half an hour into the drive Bonnie turned on the radio to break the silence. She tried to find something to distract them coming across a news report in the process.

 _"_ _Police are still in pursuit of a silver Mercedes involved in a hit and run tonight. The car, which killed a man in his 30s outside a bar in New York was stolen. It's believed the man was killed instantly and his family have been informed. We'll provide updates on the pursuit as soon as we get them."_

Bonnie and Enzo looked at each other.

Bonnie spoke first. "I know what you're gonna say. This proves there's nothing we could've done to save him. I already knew it. You just never get used to seeing people die right in front of you."

"I know love." He said thinking back to when he was a soldier in World War Two. Anyone who could go to war and not be affected by it had something seriously wrong with them in his opinion. Enzo had nightmares for years after the war until those nightmares were replaced by nightmares of being imprisoned in Augustine cells.

As if reading his thoughts Bonnie said, "I don't know how you survived it all. Between the workhouse, the war and Augustine, in theory you should be a deranged, psychotic killing-machine. Not that you haven't gone off the rails at times but you're a hell of a lot more grounded than some people."

From the look she gave him when she said "some people" he knew she meant Damon.

"What would you have done tonight if Paul didn't die?" She questioned him.

"Probably kidnapped him until the vervain was out of his system then compelled him." Enzo answered.

"You wouldn't have just killed him?" Bonnie queried.

Enzo sighed, "That's the obvious solution. But there'd be consequences. If Paul went missing or died in suspicious circumstances, the Armory would investigate it. There's a good chance there's some sort of security footage showing me talking to Paul in the bar, plus witnesses, and you were there with me too. Basically they'd have a lead and we've managed to keep you safe so far."

"Guess there'll be no more road trips for us then." Bonnie said with a sad smile.

"I don't think it would be wise." Enzo told her. After a long pause he said, "I'm not gonna lie to you Bonnie. My first instinct was to kill him if it meant protecting you, but if you were really against it I'd try and find another way. And you know you wouldn't have to worry about me going and killing him behind your back if we disagreed." He added to reassure her as she looked at him. "Paul was actually an ok person and if he wasn't so far up Alex's backside he probably would have let us go without saying anything once we reasoned with him."

"You think he had a crush on her or something?" Bonnie asked.

"Probably." Enzo said.

"Crazy what men will do for a woman." Bonnie then laughed quietly to herself.

"What?" Enzo asked her.

"Just thinking about Elena… and you know who."

"Yeah?" He looked at her expectantly.

"Ok, we both know I don't like talking about him anymore right? But I might as well put it out there. We all know how much Damon loves Elena and he's extremely protective towards her. But he is completely irrational with it. He's selfish…" Bonnie stated.

"Arrogant…" Enzo added.

"Impulsive…" Bonnie continued.

"Immature…" Enzo provided smiling at her rant.

"He completely lacks any consequential thinking skills. When it comes to protecting people he gets tunnel vision. He thinks his way is best even when he knows his way is wrong. He doesn't consider anybody else's feelings as long as he gets shit done. And I love Elena to death but I'll never understand why she chose Damon over Stefan as a long-term partner. Damon's biggest problem is that he could only ever change his ways for her, never for his own good. Sure he changed with her and she made him a better person, but sometimes it's like he thinks just loving her is enough when it's not. You need to be grounded too and he isn't there yet." Bonnie rationalised.

"I wasn't exactly a saint before we together." Enzo said almost defending Damon a little.

"True. And in no way am I condoning any of the crazy shit you did but… you did it because you were pushed over the edge, not cause you're an irrational person. I mean yeah you do have an irrational side, but you don't have to fight it all the time like Damon does. You changed for the better before we got together. You stopped doing crazy shit without anybody having to 'train' you. Damon can't seem to help fucking up and Elena was usually the one who had to 'fix' him. Friends and family are there to kick your ass and get you back in line when you fuck up, even if it's not ideal. But the love of your life shouldn't have to do it so much, it's not healthy. The feelings are too intense so someone always ends up getting manipulated, taken for granted and disappointed."

Enzo nodded contemplating her words.

"Just saying, a man should be worthy of you before you start something with him. No-one's perfect, but he shouldn't have to change the foundation of who he is when he gets you just to keep you." Bonnie continued her philosophy.

"Was Elena's brother worthy of you?" Enzo asked her playing devil's advocate.

She looked at Enzo with a slightly embarrassed smile before answering, "Jeremy wasn't a bad person. He fucked up and I wouldn't tolerate that now. But I hope he's happy. We were young… I thought I was in love at the time. We went through a lot together and I guess at the time he was what I wanted. I can't explain it any other way. But this…what you and I have… it's on another level." She finished proudly.

They smiled at each other. Enzo put his hand on Bonnie's thigh and she put her hand over his linking their fingers.

"So you and Damon were really close once." Enzo stated trying not to sound jealous, which he wasn't, well not much, but they'd never addressed Bonnie's 'chemistry' with Damon properly.

"We were. You seemed a little jealous at one point." She teased him.

"Maybe a little. But more of how loyal you were towards him when he didn't deserve it than anything else." He confessed.

"Damon has been known to be a little protective towards me and I appreciate that. We really bonded in the prison world. We only had each other, so yeah we got close. Hate to admit it but I can't just suddenly stop caring about him. But I would never go 'there' with him, even if Elena wasn't in the picture. To answer your question I guess there was a spark with Damon and I, but it was purely platonic. I mean you can have a certain spark with someone without it being sexual. You can have that with family members right? Damon is not someone I would choose to be with regardless of any kind of chemistry. People focus way too much on chemistry, cause no matter how much of it you have with someone, when you get involved with the wrong kind of person and you have unrealistic expectations of them you end up getting burned." Bonnie then had a moment of quiet contemplation.

"I don't know, maybe Elena got something different from Damon than what everybody else saw. But that kind of relationship isn't for me. There's a lot there that just wouldn't be acceptable to me. There are things you put up with from family or even your friends that you shouldn't have to deal with in a relationship. A relationship is supposed to be a partnership but how can you be equals if there's a lack of balance?" She added.

Enzo admired Bonnie's attitude. He had a deep respect for her and understood exactly what she was saying. They were equals. They appreciated each other and they listened to each other. Despite his murderous thoughts towards the men who had approached Bonnie that night Enzo had evolved into someone who wouldn't just kill people for sport anymore. Not to say that he wouldn't do some damage if someone hurt her, but he didn't get tunnel vision so he wouldn't be so impulsive that he would just do what he wanted if there'd be consequences. It would take something drastic for him to start killing at random again.

"You know what I Iove most about you?" Bonnie said.

"What?" He was intrigued.

"How you redeemed yourself without anyone pushing you. Before we got together. I'll never approve of how you got me to the cabin…" She said referring to the anti-magic sedatives. "But you've treated me with nothing but respect since I've been there. You took care of me and your intentions were pure. Another guy would've probably tried to get me into bed after a few weeks just for the hell of it, and, because of the sexual chemistry. But you knew it wasn't right at the time and you had to earn my trust."

Enzo felt a sense of pride hearing her complements towards him. "I know the sedatives were extreme and I'm sorry for that. The only way I can explain why I did it is because we had no level of trust at that point and I didn't think you'd accept my help without a fight." He said sincerely. "We didn't have time for me to convince you so I got headstrong. I fucked up and did a Damon."

She laughed at that. And he appreciated the fact that she didn't hold it against him because as much as it was a dick move deep down Enzo really was a loyal, devoted, caring person. He could be cocky sometimes but he was also vulnerable and protective of those he cared about. He had values and needed love in his life, which he wouldn't take for granted now that he had it. With Bonnie he was valued, respected and very grounded and when he was grounded his good side came out naturally.

Bonnie interrupted his thoughts. "Can't believe how tonight went down." She said downhearted. "I've had an amazing time and you're amazing for doing all of this. I just hate that someone had to die. I mean, I know it wasn't our fault but… there'd still be another level of shit to deal with if we did have to stop Paul from telling Alex about us."

"I hate what's happening too. Wish I could do more so you could get your life back."

"You know what? My life was tainted by the supernatural world long before I met you. With everything I've been through, I'm a different person now. The problem is once you become a part of this world you can't escape it, it always finds you. Losing people, drama, being on the run… all becomes a part of everyday life." Bonnie commented sadly.

She looked out of the window as Enzo continued to drive them home. At least in a few hours they'd be back in their safe haven.

It was such a relief to be back in the cabin. Enzo made his way towards the fireplace to start a fire while Bonnie sat on the couch and took her heels off. She put her feet up staring into the flames reflectively once the fire was lit. He sat beside her rubbing her thigh in a soothing way.

"You ok?" He asked her.

"Just about." She replied. "How about you?"

"Can't complain." He responded. "I'm gonna get a drink. Want anything?" He asked her.

She shook her head with a smile. He patted her hip before he got up to make himself a drink in the kitchen. Alternating between thoughts of the amazing time she'd had in New York tonight and the morbid scene in which Enzo's colleague had died Bonnie decided that she wanted to try and forget the negatives and focus on the positive side of the evening. She felt sorry for Paul and his family. But she was grateful that she was alive and still hidden from the Armory. Most importantly she was grateful for the sexy, raven haired, brown eyed man with the British accent who was currently sipping on Bourbon in the kitchen.

She got up off the couch walking up to Enzo and wrapped her arms around him from behind. She rested her cheek on his back. They stood in silence for several seconds before he turned around wrapping her up in a bear hug. Bonnie pulled back so that she could reach up to cup his face in her hands and kiss him. She licked the seam of his mouth separating his lips and tasting the Bourbon before biting his bottom lip. She brushed a kiss against his mouth then dived into a searing kiss which had him squeezing her against him so hard she could barely breathe. Bonnie teased Enzo's tongue with hers which she knew he loved as he moved his hands down to massage her ass. She felt his arousal against her belly getting bigger by the second. As inappropriate as it might've been, this was exactly what they both needed after a stressful night. The closeness and connection that had a way of shutting out the rest of the world making them feel untouchable. Bonnie broke the kiss and took Enzo by the hand, leading him into their bedroom.

As they entered the dark room Enzo wrapped his hands tightly around Bonnie from behind kissing her shoulder and neck. She moved away from him to go and switch on the lamp at the side of the room providing some soft lighting. She walked back towards him standing in front of him at the side of their bed. Reaching under her hair at the back of her neck he undid the clasp that held her halter neck dress up pulling it down to reveal a black, satin strapless bra. He kissed the exposed flesh at the top of each of her breasts before sliding the dress down her hips and her legs. He kissed his way up her thighs, making his way up her body, kissing each bit of exposed skin along the way until he reached her mouth.

Enzo pulled Bonnie towards him by her waist but she pushed him away slightly so that she could unbutton his shirt, which she did slowly looking into his eyes the whole time. She opened the shirt pushing it all the way off to reveal Enzo's firm abs, sprinkled with just enough hair to be sexy and masculine. She ran her fingers across his chest and abs, which made him shudder, then squeezed his biceps. His arms were one of his sexiest body parts and watching him play the guitar topless was one of her favourite pastimes. The way the muscles of his arms moved as he strummed the instrument had her all over him every time.

Next she undid his belt, sliding it out of his trousers to tease him and turn him on even more. She succeeded, turning herself on even more in the process. Bonnie unbuttoned his trousers and slid the zip down brushing her knuckle against his erection as she did so. She felt it twitch against her finger while Enzo flexed his hips. He slipped his shoes and socks off before Bonnie pushed his trousers down his muscular thighs. Going down on her knees she kissed below his navel while pulling his boxers down and removing them. His member was always initially intimidating when she was up this close to it but she wanted to give him the pleasure that he was always so ready and willing to give her. Taking him into her mouth she stroked his thighs, causing him to groan and let his head fall back. He slid his fingers into her hair as she took as much of him in as possible before sucking her way back to the tip.

"Ah shit…" Enzo exclaimed.

Bonnie slid her tongue along his length then circled the tip while holding the base. A move that always had him biting his lip. She took him back into her mouth feeling him tense up as he gripped her scalp.

"Bonnie…" He murmured in that deep, throaty, sexy voice that had her internal feminine muscles clenching with arousal.

He pulled her up to him stopping her oral indulgence, which didn't surprise her at all. Enzo always preferred to climax while he was inside her because he said he felt more connected to her that way.

He snapped the front clasp of her bra effortlessly throwing it across the room. He gave her a look that could melt her panties right off before using his thumbs to massage her nipples while taking her lips in a tantilizing kiss. He slid his hands around her body to knead her butt and pull her onto his erection. Rubbing his groin against hers he invaded her mouth with his tongue in the most seductive way. Bonnie pulled away from his mouth and out of his grasp indicating that she wanted him to turn around so that he had his back to the side of the bed. He moved closer to her again slipping her black satin panties down. As soon as he stood up fully again she pushed him on the bed climbing on top of him, straddling him.

"You didn't rip them off. I'm shocked." Bonnie teased him referring to her still intact underwear.

Enzo laughed, "Thought I'd be less of a barbarian tonight and treat you like a lady."

She smiled at that since he always made her feel like a lady even during their most intense sexual escapades. He returned her smile with a wolfish grin, his gaze still filled with lust. Before she could make another move he flipped her over onto her back. Looking into her eyes with a softer look of reverence he stroked the hair away from her brow and the mood changed. The heat was still there between them but now it was more about the connection than just pure lust.

"You know how much I you love right?" Enzo stated more than asked Bonnie.

"Yeah. I love you too." She told him softly.

He kissed her with a hunger and intensity that fortified his words as he slipped inside her with easy strokes. She lifted her hips to meet his as he connected with her on all levels. It was deep, it was sensual and it took away their worries temporarily. Bonnie stroked her fingers up from his thighs to his butt, across his back and shoulders. Nothing could compare to this. He knew exactly how play her body like an instrument, hitting all the right notes and strumming all the right chords so that the song that they made together was perfection. They continued to move together, matching each other's rhythm, feeling the sensations overtake them. Bonnie wrapped her legs around Enzo pulling him in tightly, stroking his face, while he wrapped his arms around her then buried his face in her neck. Squeezing each other tightly she exploded first and he followed a second later spilling himself inside her. As they rode out the aftershocks they remained in their embrace. Enzo lifted himself off her slightly running a finger down her cheek.

"You ok?" He asked her.

"Yeah." She assured him.

She wasn't alone anymore and she was tired of the supernatural world ruling her life. After everything that they had been through together, especially tonight, Bonnie was determined more than ever to fight for her freedom and her happiness with Enzo by her side. Whatever it took they'd find a way.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you again for your comments. The ideas are still flowing so here's some more…. Enjoy!**

 **Part 5.1: Will you Still Love Me?**

Bonnie woke up exhausted but content with Enzo wrapped around her body spooning her in their bed.

"Hey." She said turning her head behind her to speak to him with her eyes barely open.

He responded with a lazy smile squeezing her tightly before kissing her shoulder. "You seem like you could do with another 5 hours sleep."

She turned herself around so they were lying on their sides facing each other. "Would probably help since someone kept me busy all night." She said referring to their amorous nocturnal activities. "What time is it?" She added before he could respond to her previous comment.

Enzo checked the clock on the table by his side of the bed. "11am." He brushed a stray curl from Bonnie's face, sliding his fingers down her cheek, to her shoulder and all the way down her arm to interlink his fingers with hers over the blankets.

"When do you have to go back to the Armory?" She asked.

"Not until later, or tomorrow morning." He replied.

She was relieved, appreciating every minute they had together since his schedule was unpredictable and they still hadn't wrapped things up with the Armory. She didn't want to waste their day sleeping but she was so tired she could barely move.

"Want some coffee?" Enzo asked her as if reading her mind.

"Yeah, that would help. Thanks." She answered.

He kissed her on the mouth not caring about morning breath before making his way to the kitchen. While he was busy making coffee Bonnie forced herself out of bed determined to make the most of the day.

After taking a shower together they got dressed and started going through some more paperwork that Enzo had snuck out of the Armory's archives. They sat side by side on the couch with the fire blazing in front of them and the coffee table covered in papers.

"This is useless." Bonnie said regarding the information they'd spent the last hour sifting through.

"You need a break love." Enzo told her.

He stood up putting Bonnie's feet up on the couch before going into the kitchen.

"What something to drink?" He asked her.

"Yeah, I want a margarita." She requested.

"Does this look like a Mexican cocktail bar?" He responded to her playful request.

She smiled. "Red wine will do." She answered properly.

Enzo poured her a glass of wine and got himself a Bourbon. Bonnie had lost the taste for Bourbon, only drinking it on rare occasions now as it reminded her of Damon. After giving the wine to her he picked his guitar up off its stand. Taking a tall stool from the corner of the room he sat near the fireplace and began to play a blues version of John Mayer's 'Gravity'. Bonnie laughed and he smiled with her as they remembered the way an unknown singer (if you could call him that) had slaughtered the song at an open night mic during their eventful trip to New York. The lyrics resonated with her as she contemplated how they were both in a situation that was trying to bring them down while they fought so hard against it.

After finishing the song on a more successful note than the open mic night singer he began to play a slow, almost Spanish style instrumental rendition of Amy Winehouse's cover of 'Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow'. It was a song he knew Bonnie liked. It reminded her of their first time. The feelings between them were strong before they'd even shared their first kiss, but there was always that little bit of uncertainty at the beginning of a relationship. Luckily, they didn't take long to admit what they meant to each other and now there were no doubts. She watched his fingers play the notes with ease as the soothing melody helped her to unwind. She was always able to appreciate his attractiveness even more when he was playing the guitar as he was so calm and absorbed in his actions. The song was beautiful. He continued the acoustic performance looking at Bonnie while she appreciated his musical talent. When he was finished he walked over to her.

"Your turn." He said holding out the guitar towards her.

"If you think I'm gonna be able to play that song the way you just did, you're looking at the wrong person." She told him with sarcastic humour.

"Obviously." He retorted, earning him a feigned look of shock from Bonnie. "Just thought you might appreciate the distraction." He added referring to their futile research.

"Remind me again why I'm in a relationship with you." She sassed him in return.

He laughed at her comment as she took the instrument. Deciding to move away from the mess on the coffee table she went to sit on the stool that Enzo had used. He stood next to her, instructing her on which notes and chords to play. When she struggled he stood behind her, putting his fingers over hers to help her achieve the correct sounds. She enjoyed the simple closeness, the feeling of his chest against her back, the sound of his voice close to her ear and the feeling of his arms brushing against hers. It made everything feel normal, as if she wasn't hiding from a shady supernatural organisation. As if they'd never have to worry about her being mortal and him being immortal. Thinking about those problems drove her crazy, they also made her determined to find a solution. Bonnie spaced out for a moment mentally revisiting a discussion she and Enzo had had on a few occasions.

"I know it would be taking a huge risk but I think it's time we went to see Virginia St. John at the psych ward." She said looking contemplatively at the paperwork on the table.

"We're not that desperate yet." He replied.

She turned around on the chair to face him. "Really?" She said, not surprised at his response but still beginning to feel agitated anyway. "We don't have any good leads… I've been here for 2 and a half years hiding away like some fugitive…I can't do this anymore."

"I know Bonnie." Enzo responded, in an understanding voice. "But it's too risky. Virginia's in that place for a reason. We don't know what state she's in or if she can even tell us anything useful. And like I said before, even if I try to compel her they could be giving her vervain. We don't know if Alex or anyone else goes to see her or if the hospital would inform Alex if either of us went there. Virginia could even tell Alex herself if we showed up."

"Virginia can't stand your family." Bonnie reminded him.

"She's a St. John. We can't trust her." He stated.

"I trust you." She retorted, reminding him that he was a St. John too.

"Well then trust me to figure this out." He told her.

Bonnie sighed with frustration. She loved him and appreciated everything he did for her but she was angry about the situation and his dismissal of her suggestion to visit Virginia irritated her. She got up handing him the guitar and walked into the kitchen. She poured herself a shot of Bourbon as it was the nearest thing to her. After downing the drink she slammed the glass down on the kitchen counter in agitation.

"I'm sorry if you're pissed off, but…" Enzo began.

"You know what pisses me off the most?! That I can't do anything to help myself!" She told him raising her voice.

"I'm doing everything I can to help you!" He responded raising his voice a little too.

"Did you not hear what I said?!" She shouted. "I can't do anything to help myself!" She continued, emphasizing each word. "For years I was the go to girl when my friends were in trouble. I got them out of some seriously shitty situations. I was the rescuer! I even got myself out of the prison world and now that I'm in some really deep shit again all I can do is sit around in a secluded cabin doing research!" She saw the hurt look on his face before it turned to an expression of anger, but she was angry too and nothing he was saying was helping.

"Where are those friends now that you need help, huh?!" He responded sarcastically.

"Don't bring them into this! They have their own lives and their own problems! Caroline and Alaric have a family to take care of, we have no idea where Stefan is, Matt's still grieving…"

"And Damon…? He interrupted.

"Don't even think about bringing him into this!" She said getting angrier by the second.

"Then I won't. Because it doesn't matter. He's not here. I am." He told her in a calm voice but she could sense that he was still angry.

"You can't expect to get me out of this by yourself." She stated.

"Why not? If there's no one else, why not?!" His voice started to get a little louder again.

"Because this is my problem and even though I don't have my magic I'm still capable of thinking and coming up with a plan too!" She told him. "Maybe I should go undercover as a patient at the psych ward."

"No." He rejected her idea without hesitation, fuelling her anger.

"Excuse me?" She said ready to challenge him.

"I said no." He insisted.

"You really think you can tell me what to do?"

"Bonnie you can't put yourself at risk like that. You've been safe for this long. I'm still trying to follow up a lead on your cousin Lucy…" He tried to reason with her.

"You're not listening to me!" She interrupted.

"You want me to let you go out there and put yourself in even more danger?!"

"I just wanna do something to help myself!"

"Is what I'm doing not enough for you?!"

"No it's not and I don't mean that in a bad way."

"How else could you mean it?!" He shouted.

"We're supposed to be in this together!"

"We are! But you need to realise that I'm trying to protect you!"

"You're trying to control me!" She yelled at him.

"Are you being serious?!"

She knew she'd gone too far but she was mad as hell, the frustration of the whole situation was tearing her apart. "Maybe you shoulda just left me alone to take care of myself when the Armory came looking for me." She told him looking away.

"Really? Well how about I leave you alone right now?!" He said grabbing his car keys and walking to the door.

"Good idea!" She shouted watching him walk out of the cabin, slamming the door behind him.

TO BE CONTINUED…

 **END NOTE:**

 **There are numerous versions of the song 'Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow'. My favourite is the old school version by The Shirelles but I thought Amy Winehouse's cover might be more appropriate for TVD. I imagined Enzo's instrumental as a perfected blend of Amy's version and an instrumental cover on YouTube by a guitarist called Alberto Trejo.**

 **I didn't know any of John Mayer's songs until I heard the cover of 'Gravity' by Vince Harder and Stan Walker on YouTube and thought it was amazing.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Part 5.2: Will you Still Love Me?**

 _Shit!_ Bonnie thought to herself. She hadn't meant to take things that far and hurt his feelings. She was struggling with the lack of freedom and lack of a solution. She knew how much of a risk going to see Virginia would be, but she had no idea what else to do. And Enzo _was_ doing enough, she just meant that they could do with some help. She had another shot of Bourbon then went to sit at the breakfast table. Looking at her cell-phone she contemplated calling Caroline. She wasn't going to ask for help. Caroline had enough to deal with. She just wanted to talk. Bonnie still hadn't told Caroline that she and Enzo were together even though she sensed Caroline was dying to ask her about it. Now seemed like the right time to get it all off her chest. She used the burner app on her cell-phone to create a new number and make the call.

"Hello?" Caroline answered after a few rings.

"Hey, Care."

"Bon?"

"Yeah it's me."

"Good to hear your voice. It's been a while. You must be keeping busy."

 _She's starting already._ Bonnie thought as Caroline began her typical subtle insinuations regarding Bonnie and Enzo's relationship.

"Just been doing research as usual."

"Ok. Any leads?" Caroline queried.

Bonnie sighed heavily. "No."

"Are you ok?"

"Not really." Bonnie admitted before telling Caroline about her argument with Enzo.

"I'm with him on this one Bon. It's a huge risk. There has to be another way to figure this out. I'll speak to Ric when he gets back with the girls. He might know something or have some ideas on how to help."

"Thanks, Care." Bonnie said, not disputing anything Caroline said as she was right on all accounts. "There's something else I need to tell you." Bonnie added.

"Yeah?" Caroline responded. Bonnie could hear the excited anticipation in her voice.

"Me and Enzo are together."

"As in a 'couple' together?" Caroline asked awaiting confirmation.

"Yeah." Bonnie answered putting an end to the secrecy.

"FINALLY!" Caroline said, almost deafening Bonnie over the phone. "Been waiting for you to fess up for months!"

Bonnie laughed. "So how come you didn't say anything? Not like you to keep your suspicions to yourself."

"Things have changed, Bon. We're older… Sometimes a situation can be complicated." Caroline told her.

"Like with you and Ric."

"Yeah."

"Or you and Stefan."

"Let's not even go there."

"Sorry, Care. I know you're still pissed about that."

"Well, anyway…" Caroline began. "Sometimes the last thing you need is people judging you and interfering. I just thought I'd let you tell me when you were ready."

"Thanks, Care. So you don't think I'm crazy?" Bonnie asked her.

"Look, Enzo's no saint. He's done some crazy shit and I'm still trying to forgive him for it." She said referring to him kidnapping her amongst other things. "But we've all gone off he rails at times… like me when my Mom died. I'm not making excuses, but, part of being a vampire is that things can get pretty extreme. Anyway, if I could tolerate Damon for Elena's sake I can definitely accept you and Enzo." They both laughed at that last comment.

"That means a lot to me." Bonnie told her.

"I know you Bon. You wouldn't be with Enzo if he wasn't good to you. And I think it's pretty obvious from the fact that he even decided to protect you in the first place that he cared about you way before you got together. It's a pretty big deal taking care of someone the way he's taken care of you when you were barely friends to begin with." Caroline paused before asking, "So exactly how long have you two been together?"

"About 6 months, give or take." Bonnie answered.

"6 MONTHS!" Caroline exclaimed, almost deafening Bonnie again. "You kept the fact that you're in an actual relationship to yourself for 6 months?! I mean, I had a feeling you two had a thing for each other way before that, but I thought maybe you'd just accidently fallen into bed together as a one off or something…"

"Caroline?!"

"What? You were single for a long time, he was busy with the Armory. You put two hot people alone together in a secluded cabin for long enough… something's bound to happen. I know one-nighters aren't your style, but all that sexual frustration… I guess you two must be pretty serious though. I mean, I wouldn't have thought you'd ever wanna get involved with a vampire in that way much less be in a relationship with one. And, as much as Enzo can be a flirt, I couldn't see him going through all that trouble to help you just to use you for sex." Caroline explained.

"We are serious." Bonnie admitted. "And I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I just didn't wanna curse it by putting it out there and I wasn't exactly sure how you'd react. I just wasn't ready."

"Well now you have told me I want _all_ the details." Caroline insisted.

Bonnie told her everything from New Year's Eve to her and Enzo's trip to New York, leaving out the saucier details. She explained how her frostiness towards him in the beginning changed due to his patience and understanding. Caroline was impressed by Enzo's change in behaviour after all of the irrational, destructive things he had done before.

"You never told me how he got you to the cabin in the first place." Caroline said.

Bonnie hadn't told her originally as Caroline was already worried enough about her hiding out from the Armory. The twins had only just been born and Caroline had moved to Texas. Bonnie knew that if she told Caroline about the anti-magic sedatives and that she'd basically been kidnapped, Caroline would be on a mission to find her and probably castrate Enzo! Bonnie didn't want to put her through that kind of stress or for her to leave the twins. But now that it was history she reluctantly explained that part of the story.

"Seriously, I'm gonna have to have words with Enzo next time I speak to him. What is wrong with these guys? That sounds like something Damon would do. He should have called me. I could have helped. You could've come to Texas with us."

"Like I said before Care, I wouldn't wanna put you Ric and the girls in danger." Bonnie reiterated.

"Just wish I could do something to help." Caroline responded. "Maybe Matt could help, or Tyler since he worked for the Armory too?"

"Matt and I aren't exactly as close as we used to be. We haven't spoken in so long. I couldn't even be there for him when Penny died. I don't exactly think he'd be too thrilled about me and Enzo either."

"True. Matt's gonna shit a brick when he finds out about you two!" They both laughed at that. "Well, if nothing else maybe you should speak to Matt just to clear the air, he might be able to put you in touch with Tyler too. Let me get Matt's new number for you." Caroline added.

After taking Matt's new number Bonnie changed the topic of conversation. "So… you and Ric…?

"We're fine." Caroline told her.

"Mmmhmm…" Bonnie responded.

"We both know Ric is never gonna be the love of my life, but what we have is solid."

"And what is that exactly?" Bonnie queried.

"We have a family. The girls need us. They need a mom, and, a vampire might not be anybody's first choice, but I love them more than anything. Their lives are gonna be affected by the supernatural world eventual, at least I can protect them." Caroline explained. "Ric and I understand each other. There's no drama. There's a lot of respect there… and isn't friendship always the best foundation for a good relationship?"

Bonnie knew exactly what she meant, because her relationship with Enzo began with friendship. Unfortunately, a little bit of the respect which was such a strong element within the relationship had been lost during their fight. But she wanted to fix things and she knew he would too.

"Anyway, enough about me and Ric. Want are you gonna do about you and Enzo?" Caroline asked.

"I dunno. Just talk it out I guess. We'll have to compromise." Bonnie answered. "He needs some space and so do I. But he'll come back when he's ready. He always does."

Enzo parked his car near a lake about 30 minutes away from the cabin. He got out of the car and sat against the bonnet going over the argument with Bonnie in his mind. He had hoped that the sound of the water and the greenery would help to calm him down but he was still wound up. He still felt some guilt for introducing her to Alex in the first place, but as he and Bonnie had discussed ages ago, Alex was so determined when she wanted something that even without the introduction she would have tried to get to Bonnie. And that's precisely why they had to figure out what she wanted fast. Maybe Bonnie's idea of going undercover was the best option. But he was terrified of losing her and Alex could not be trusted, or underestimated. He didn't see how they could make contact with Virginia without Alex finding out. So far Alex had hardly provided Enzo with any information about his background. God only knew what she wanted from Bonnie. If it involved anything even remotely like his experience in the Augustine cells he'd die before he let her do that to Bonnie. The Armory were big on 'experiments' so that was the obvious assumption, especially with Bonnie being one of the last living Bennett witches.

When Alex had said that Bonnie was a priority on the Armory's 'acquisition' list Enzo knew not to ask too many questions. But his first instinct was to stop them from getting anywhere near her. Alex didn't trust many people. She revealed very little about the Armory's 'projects' and she certainly didn't trust him to bring Bonnie in again when he failed to keep her there after Damon almost ended Rayna Cruz's last life. He only found out that the Armory was going to capture Bonnie because he used his vamp hearing to listen in on a conversation between his 'colleagues'. At that point the 'hate' between Bonnie and himself had been a blessing as Alex didn't suspect that he'd helped Bonnie to evade her and so far he'd played the double agent role successfully.

Bonnie was one of the few people in his life who made him feel like he was worth something. She made him feel valued and respected. She made him feel like he belonged. She gave him hope. He'd spent a long time running around like a delinquent teenager, causing trouble as a way to let out the anger and frustration he felt at being alone. Not even being in the army made him feel like he belonged. But Bonnie was there for him as much as he was there for her. And, as old fashioned as it seemed he felt that as a man it was his job to protect his girl. That's what hurt him so much about their disagreement. It was as if she'd lost faith in him.

 _What would Damon do?_ He thought out of nowhere. Well maybe not nowhere. Damon, like Lily and Maggie, was one of the other people who had made him feel like he was worth something at one point in his life. Damon would probably kill Alex, which Enzo wouldn't object to too strongly, even though she was his blood. But of course there would be consequences and they'd almost certainly still be after Bonnie.

Enzo had been angry with Damon for hurting Bonnie, but as his main focus was now protecting her the anger became indifference. He'd accepted Damon's selfishness a long time ago, he was who he was. Enzo had also gone through a phase of feeling jealousy towards Damon as it seemed that no matter what he did he was always loved and forgiven left, right and centre. By Elena, Stefan, Bonnie. Of course Damon didn't have the privilege of Bonnie's forgiveness anymore. He fucked up royally when he abandoned her. But Enzo would never leave her.

Enzo's cell-phone rang interrupting his thoughts. When he saw Caroline's number on the screen he immediately assumed something had happened to Bonnie.

"Caroline?" He answered anxiously.

"Hey, Enzo…." She began in her usual sunny tone, before the yelling started. "Wanna tell me what the _hell_ was going through your mind when you drugged Bonnie to get her to the cabin?!"

Clearly Bonnie was fine and she'd recently spoken to Caroline, who was now about to bust his balls.

"So…?!" Caroline persisted.

Enzo sighed before answering. "Caroline, you don't have to tell me it was a dickhead move. I've apologised to Bonnie and I know that doesn't make it right. But at the time I thought it was the only way I could get her to come with me so I could keep her safe."

"You could've talked to me before you did it, I could've helped you." Caroline said not 100% satisfied with his explanation.

"There was no time. You had enough on your plate and frankly, all that was on my mind was getting to Bonnie as quickly as possible so that the Armory wouldn't get to her first."

Caroline was silent for a few moments, as if she was contemplating whether or not to forgive his indiscretion. "You know you still have a lot of sucking up to do before I can forgive you for this… _and_ other things." Caroline told him bluntly.

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry." He said sincerely.

"So, anything else you wanna let me know?" Caroline asked him.

"I'm guessing you and Bonnie had a long talk."

"Yeah, we did."

"What did she say?" He queried.

"Just basically that you were acting like an asshole, but she didn't mean to piss you off and obviously she still loves you."

So Bonnie had finally let the cat out of the bag. He couldn't help the sense of pride that hit him as Caroline acknowledged that Bonnie loved him. He'd wondered how long it would take Bonnie to start telling people about them. He, on the other hand, didn't care who knew, he was proud to be with her. But then again she wasn't the former screw-up in the relationship.

"Should I be prepared for you to start shouting at me again?" He said referring to the fact that Bonnie had been upset enough to call her friend after their fight and the revelation that they were now a couple.

"Well, firstly, I figured you two were doing _something_ together months ago. I'm still shocked you kept it to yourselves for so long, but anyway good for you two. Bonnie deserves a real man who puts her first and that's exactly what you've been doing for the last few years. Getting back to your fight, I'm with you. It's too dangerous."

"Glad someone agrees."

"That said, Bonnie is very self-sufficient and if she really wants to do something, she's gonna do it. Arguing with her about it isn't gonna help. She knows that going to the hospital is dangerous, but you telling her she can't do it is pushing her to go against you." Caroline told him.

"So what do I do?" Enzo asked.

"You both just need to calm down and listen to each other. Once you do that, you'll find a resolution."

Caroline was right. Bonnie could be stubborn as hell at times. She wasn't irrational though. He was still frustrated by the argument and by the whole situation, but he was calm enough now that he wanted to talk it out. He was sorry for undermining her, but he'd been angry about her willingness to put herself at risk and hurt by her lack of faith in him. He wanted to do what was best for her but he wouldn't let her walk all over him. There was too much respect and understanding between them to let one argument ruin everything. After spending so much time trying to decide where his loyalties should lie, with Bonnie, Enzo had finally found someone who was genuinely on his side and he wasn't about to lose her. It was time to go home.

TO BE CONTINUED…


	9. Chapter 9

**5.3: Will You Still Love Me?**

After speaking to Caroline Bonnie took the bottle of Bourbon from the kitchen and sat back down at the breakfast table mulling everything over. She poured herself another shot. Staring at the bottle her thoughts turned to Damon. What would he do if he knew she had gone into hiding because of Alex and the Armory? _Probably kill Alex!_ Bonnie thought to herself sardonically. It actually wasn't a bad idea. Enzo probably wouldn't even object. It's not like Alex had ever treated him like family. She'd never even treated him with respect. She was just another user. Bonnie had to laugh at herself for having such a dark thought. The more bad shit that happened in her life, the more jaded she became. When trying to survive in the supernatural world there was always a body count unfortunately.

Going back to the idea of 'taking out' Alex, Bonnie thought about the repercussions, as the Armory wouldn't let their head person be killed without seeking revenge. And, although Alex kept things confidential, at least one or two other people at the Armory had to know why she wanted Bonnie. So no, eliminating Alex was not an option. Enzo couldn't compel the information out of anyone at the Armory due to the protection of vervain. And, the idea of kidnapping any of them was pointless too. How would they even know who to kidnap that would have the right information, and, using them as leverage was useless too. It would all get very messy if they went down that road. Alex was ruthless. She'd probably let one of her minions die before she revealed her plans, because whatever it was she wanted it definitely wasn't something that Bonnie would give up willingly. There had to be a solution where they could get the information they needed without Alex finding that Enzo was protecting Bonnie. Her thoughts were getting way too dark.

Bonnie drank the Bourbon and started to think about Damon again. As angry as she was with him a part of her missed him. Despite years of animosity between them he'd become her best friend. She just couldn't understand how he could go from being her best friend, rescuing her and protecting her at times, to removing himself from her life forever. She got that he missed Elena…. But he didn't even plan to say goodbye to her face to face. She couldn't forgive him. He abandoned her, so now the easiest thing to do was erase him from her mind. She felt so guilty for the things she'd said to Enzo because unlike Damon, so far, Enzo had proved that he would never leave her.

Since she had no idea when Enzo would return Bonnie decided that she may as well call Matt. God only knew how that phone call would go down. She picked up her cell-phone and took a deep breath before trying the number that Caroline gave her.

"Hello?" Matt answered in a deep, groggy voice.

"Hey, Matt." Bonnie responded.

"Who is thi… Bonnie?" He asked.

"Yeah, it's me." She answered. There was an awkward silence. "How are you?"

"I've been better." He replied in a deadpan tone. There was more awkward silence.

"I'm really sorry about Penny." Bonnie told him sincerely.

"Me too." He said in the same tone as before.

"How are you coping?" She asked him.

"Just getting on with things."

 _Well this phone call is going well!_ Bonnie thought to herself mockingly. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you when it all happened."

"Yeah. I heard you were hiding out from the Armory." He responded a little more softly.

"Yeah, Enzo helped me out when they came looking for me."

"I heard. So what are you two like BFF's or something now? Cause you know you can't trust that guy, Bon" Matt used the acronym mockingly.

"Actually, we're a little more than that." Bonnie admitted anxiously.

"What do you mean?" Matt queried cynically.

"Me and Enzo… We're together."

"Are you being serious right now?!" Matt's shocked voice got louder.

"Yeah." Bonnie said confidently.

"WHAT THE FUCK! After everything that guy did to me… Caroline…Elena… even you!?"

Bonnie was not at all surprised by his reaction. "Matt, you don't have to tell me that Enzo's fucked up in the past." She began calmly. "He knows it and I know it. He can't take back what he's done and I'm not excusing it, but he's changed." She tried to convince him.

"So what are you two Damon and Elena 2.0? He fucks your friends over every other week and you forgive him?!" Matt said sarcastically.

"Enzo and I are nothing like Damon and Elena."

"Really?" He said with a sardonic laugh.

"Really." Bonnie said, understanding Matt's cynicism, but growing tired with having to justify herself. "Enzo changed long before we got together."

"But for how long, Bon? How long before he fucks up and you get hurt? Cause that's what they do. Vampires… they always do something to fuck things up and ruin your life!"

Ironically, the conversation was pretty much going as Bonnie expected. But Matt's words still hurt her. She had to defend her man confidently.

"It's been 2 and a half years, Matt, and all Enzo's done in that time is take care of me and treat me with respect!"

"It's just a matter of time, Bon. They can't help it." He said referring to all vampires.

"Caroline isn't like that." She told him.

"Caroline is Caroline, but she's still had her moments." He said referring to the time she turned off her humanity after Sheriff Forbes death. "It's like trouble follows them wherever they go."

"Matt, I know you've dealt with a lot of shit in your life with what happened to Vicki and everything else, and, I'm sorry. But vampires are not the root of the world's problems." She said with sympathy.

"You just don't get it." He said wearily.

"Really, Matt?!" She said, starting to get beyond annoyed. "My Mom was turned into a vampire, Silas murdered my Dad. So don't tell me that I don't get it! Nobody is perfect! Not even you! And neither am I! But vampires are not all the same and if you could really believe that for one minute, you could get past all this bitterness you have inside you."

"He's gonna wreck your life, Bon. And I don't think I'll be able to help you when that happens." Matt told her coldly, still unconvinced.

"Matt, I'm sorry for everything you've been through, but you can't go on like this. Enzo has done more for me than anybody else has over the last 2 and a half years and if you can't at least appreciate that then there's nothing more to say."

"I just can't deal with this right now. You're one of my oldest friends… I just think you're making a big mistake trusting Enzo. I can't talk about this anymore. I gotta go." Then Matt cut off the call.

 _Shit!_ Bonnie thought to herself. So much for Matt helping them out. She understood his anger and she didn't expect him to be over the moon about her relationship with Enzo. But, at the very least she would have liked to conclude the call with a 'let's agree to disagree', rather than being cut off. She valued Matt's friendship. And while she didn't expect that they'd ever be as close as they were again, she hoped that they'd at least be on civil terms in the future.

Well now that that awkward conversation was over (awkward being an understatement), Bonnie just had one more person to resolve things with for the day. But at least with Enzo she knew the conversation they had when he returned would end on a positive note. Because however angry they were with each other, they still loved each other and what they had was too strong to fall apart so easily.

When Enzo entered the cabin Bonnie was still sitting at the breakfast table. He sat down opposite her, then took the glass she'd been using and the bottle of Bourbon and poured himself a shot. He downed that one then poured himself another swallowing it in one go too. Bonnie watched him and when he looked at her he observed the weary expression on her face.

"Just spoke to Matt." She said breaking the ice. "He's not impressed with me at the moment."

"I just spoke to Caroline." He responded. "She's not too impressed with me at the moment either."

"I'm sorry." She said sincerely. "You've done more than enough for me. I just… I just can't take this anymore. I just wanna travel the world with you. I feel so helpless. I guess I was just… taking my frustration out on you and that's not right cause… you didn't have to help me in the first place. But you did. I'm just… I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too." Enzo told her. "And Bonnie, I am listening to you. But I still don't think we should go and see Virginia. At least not until we've exhausted all our options."

"What options?" She said, sighing cynically. "We have no other options. But, you're right. It is a massive risk. We should try and find another way, then as a last resort we go and see Virginia."

He nodded in agreement. "I should never have got you to come to the Armory…" Enzo began.

"It's not your fault. You know Alex would have tracked me down eventually. Maybe it's better that you were involved, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to warn me that she was looking for me and hide me." She reassured him.

"Why did you decide to stay?" He asked her. "When I brought you here the way I did, what made you choose to stay?"

"What other choice did I have?"

"You could have left. You weren't a prisoner."

"And go where? I had no one."

"Why did you trust me, after what I did to you when you and Damon came to the Armory?" He said, referring to him knocking her out and almost making Damon wolf chow. They'd discussed it more than once before. Enzo had apologised profusely, not expecting that she'd ever forgive him for it even when they were on friendlier terms. Bonnie had told him that what he'd done was completely unacceptable. She did forgive him though. She told him that he had clearly temporarily lost his mind, but his actions wouldn't be forgotten.

"You didn't have to tell me about Damon's plans to desiccate." She said in response. "When you said you wouldn't let the Armory bring me in I gave you the benefit of the doubt."

"Do you think you're still here because there's nowhere else to go, no one else to go to?" He asked anxiously.

"No." She said softly. "I'm still here because of you."

He looked at her, still feeling slightly insecure.

"Enzo, I know what I want and the fact that it's just been me and you for the past few years doesn't mean I'm just imagining the way I feel about you. The feelings are real."

His gaze changed from anxious to content as he understood her words.

"I know you have your own mind." He told her softly.

"Glad to hear it, cause that's never gonna change." She said confidently with a smile.

"That doesn't mean I'm gonna let you go out there and do crazy shit that puts you in danger without saying anything though." He told her sternly.

"Wouldn't expect you too." She said. Bonnie understood that part of being in an adult relationship meant listening to each other and working your problems out together. It was just that the whole situation was pushing her to a point of desperation. What she needed to do was just breath and give her mind time to come up with another plan. She was still safe for the time being.

"You know how I feel about you." He began, expressing that he loved her without actually using the word. "I can't let anything happen to you, especially after what happened in New York."

"I know." Bonnie replied.

Enzo stood up and Bonnie followed. They moved towards each other meeting in an affectionate embrace. He kissed her temple and stroked her hair while she wrapped her arms around his middle tightly.

"What do we do now?" Bonnie asked.

"How about we stop worrying about the Armory for the rest of the day and I entertain you with some more music?" He suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Bonnie agreed, looking up at him with a smile before they walked over to the fireplace to enjoy some stress free time together. Their problems would just have to wait to be solved another day.

 **End Note:**

 **Hope you enjoyed this part of Bonenzo's story. The recent chapters have been a bit more serious with all the angst and the heart-to-hearts. To lighten the mood I've been thinking of writing a chapter with some costume-based smut. It won't be anything to do with cheerleading as I have something else in mind. What do you think? Should I go for it or has there been enough smut already? Please let me know in the reviews.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you once again for the reviews. I'm noticing that the Bonenzo fanfics are coming out thick and fast from everyone too. Hard to keep up with them all and I have a lot to catch up on, but it's about time!**

 **Writing this part of the story made me so indecisive. The idea was well mapped out in my mind weeks ago, but even after writing it I wasn't sure which costume to run with. Some of those ideas are still plaguing me so maybe there's potential for some unrelated one-shots…**

 **Anyway, hope you enjoy this little break from the recent Bonenzo angst in this story. Here it goes…**

 **Part 6: Soldier, Soldier**

Bonnie stood in front of the mirror in her and Enzo's bedroom adding the final touches to complete her transformation. The wavy, medium-long red wig looked surprisingly natural and suited her caramel skin tone and hazel- green eyes perfectly. Not quite 'Rihanna red', the wig was more of a deep mahogany tone. She put on the camouflage coloured cap and some sunglasses to complete the outfit. _Sexy outfit but a shitty disguise_ , she thought to herself. Well at least if someone from the Armory was in her vicinity the shitty disguise would give her enough time to jet before they recognised her.

It had been a few weeks since her first major argument with Enzo over the idea of Bonnie going undercover at Virginia St. John's psychiatric hospital. The race to find out what Alex wanted from Bonnie was stressing them both out. As much of a risk as it was going out in general, it was looking more and more like going undercover would be Bonnie's only option. So, she thought she might as well have some fun before that time came. There were no leads regarding her cousin, Lucy Bennett, and so far no one else was able to help them. Tonight Bonnie just wanted to focus on her and Enzo having fun and injecting some passion back into their relationship. The sex with him was still amazing, there was just less of it due to the stress. She had managed to convince him, with difficulty, that they should go to a Halloween party in Philadelphia that Bonnie had seen advertised in the 'What's On' section of a newspaper Enzo had given her. So now here she was dressed up like some sexy military chick, in a short, camouflage low rise skirt, which was short enough to be sexy, but not so short that you could see her uterus if she bent over. With it she wore a tight, cropped camouflage t-shirt, which showed off her toned midriff, a cropped, fitted camouflage jacket, hold-up black stockings (the tops of which were just about concealed by the skirt) and black mid-calf length boots with spiked heels and laces up the front of them. Bonnie laughed to herself over the outfit. She wasn't used to dressing up like some sex kitten. But, she was getting older and more confident. And of course, the sexy man who had been her rock for the last few years also brought out this side of her.

Bonnie made her way into the main living area of the cabin. As soon as Enzo laid eyes on her it was almost like he was having a cartoon moment. The one where the cartoon character's eyes literally pop out of their head and they start panting with their tongue hanging out.

"Whoa!" Enzo said his eyes wide with shock.

Bonnie smiled nervously biting her lip. "Is it too much?" she asked, wondering if the outfit was over the top and verging on stripper wear rather than fancy dress wear.

"It's too something..." Enzo began. Bonnie frowned slightly.

"But you look amazing," he continued. "That wig actually really suits you."

"Yeah, I thought it was gonna look ridiculous but I'm really liking it."

Bonnie walked towards where Enzo was standing beside the fireplace.

"You look pretty damn hot yourself," she said complementing his outfit.

He too wore a soldier costume, which consisted of camouflage combat pants, a camouflage belt hidden under a thin khaki green V-neck t-shirt, steel military dog tags, a camouflage cap and dark brown boots. Sunglasses and a dark brown WWII bomber jacket would complete the look. The t-shirt showcased those sexy arms Bonnie loved so much as well as the toned width of his shoulders and chest. The way he stood there by the fireplace with his arms crossed and muscles bulging almost had her salivating.

The jacket, which Enzo had yet to put on, was a nod to his time as a soldier during WWII. Although he had seen the horrors of war, it was an important part of his life. He was able to wear the costume without focusing on the traumatic side of his experience. It also bore no resemblance to the uniform he wore as a soldier in Europe.

Enzo put on the jacket and the sunglasses. Bonnie gave him a wolf-whistle then laughed as she reached him and put her arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and gave her a lingering kiss on the mouth. He moved his hands downwards to investigate what was underneath her skirt.

"What the hell you doing?" she asked him with a smile.

"Just seeing what I'll be working with later," he answered matter of factly.

"If only you knew," she replied so saucily, before moving away from him to pick the car keys up off the coffee table. With no purse to carry tonight thanks to the pockets on her outfit, Bonnie made her way to the front door of the cabin.

"Come on then, let's go," she said, turning to look at him then opening the door. "You first," she said, as he paused at the door waiting for her to exit before he did as usual.

He waited a moment before following her request. As Enzo began to walk through the door she admired his ass. It was one of his best features next to his perfectly muscled arms. She couldn't resist giving his butt a slap as he walked past her.

"What the...?" Enzo began, looking back at her.

"Makes a change huh?" she said referring to his habit of slapping her on the behind at every given opportunity. Enzo just shook his head with a smile as they made their way to the car.

#

Today Bonnie was doing the driving, although it would be a long journey. To a certain degree it gave her the sense of freedom that she had been lacking. She wouldn't be drinking tonight. Well, maybe she could indulge in just the one alcoholic beverage, but she wanted to be completely sober for what she had in store for Enzo later.

He clearly found her driving his car sexy, as now that his sunglasses were off his eyes had barely left her thighs for the last 20 minutes and he was currently playing with the elastic at the top of her stockings as the skirt had ridden up high on her thighs. All she could do was smile contently and try not to become so turned on that she crashed.

Enzo pulled his hand away for a moment. Bonnie was partly relieved that she could now devote her full attention to driving, but partly disappointed, missing the contact of his skin against hers. Minutes later he began to run his fingers up and down her thighs, turned on by the movement of her legs she worked the pedals.

"What is wrong with you?" she said with a laugh since he seemed to be having difficulty keeping his hands off her.

"Have you looked in the mirror?" he said, in a deep, husky voice with a lust filled gaze.

She turned to look at him with a smirk then looked away. "We're not stopping..." she began. "Whatever is running through your mind will have to wait till later," she asserted.

"Promise?" He asked.

She answered by looking him up and down and giving him a nod.

"Thought you were more into the cheerleader look," Bonnie queried.

"This is even better," he said. "More adult," he added.

 _Everything about this relationship is more adult_ , Bonnie thought to herself as she continued their journey to Philadelphia.

#

It was so ironic that they were travelling to a city associated with American Independence, when Bonnie was battling for her own freedom. The city contained icons such as the Liberty Bell, which was a symbol of freedom and associated with the anti-slavery movement, and, Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution was signed. The Halloween party was being held at an arts centre, which was often used as a live music venue as well as hosting workshops, art exhibitions, theatrical performances and dances, amongst other things. Caroline had ordered the tickets for them, and Bonnie's costume, using the credit card that Enzo had setup. She couldn't be at the party as she'd be taking the twins trick or treating. But she was happy to help Bonnie and Enzo get out and enjoy themselves despite the risk.

When they arrived in Philadelphia it was warmer than expected for the season. Bonnie was grateful for this as her costume was not exactly conducive to conserving body heat. Once she'd parked the car in a car park at the side of the centre they put their sunglasses back on and made their way up to the large, modern looking, terracotta brick building. It had two storeys and huge windows. As they entered the building they had their tickets checked at the box office before continuing through to the lobby.

In the main party area there were tables and seats with a bar to the right, and, there was a medium-sized stage with a DJ playing music. The place was pretty full already with most of the crowd looking to be from their early 20s to mid-30s. With a multitude of rooms there was more to do than just dance, as the event included a horror themed art exhibition with paintings, photography and props. There was a small theatre room where horror movies were being shown on a big screen. There were also Halloween themed carnival games such as the severed head dunk (basketball with a severed head), archery (with the bulls-eye being an eyeball) and blood balloon darts. The prizes included bottles of champagne, horror movie collections and theatre tickets. Enzo won a bottle of champagne playing blood balloon darts. He popped three balloons of the same colour on a large board covered in multi-coloured balloons, which were filled with fake blood. He'd complained saying, "These things are all bloody rigged anyway." He was probably right since it was so hard to win. Bonnie suspected that somehow he may have used his vampire abilities to help secure a prize.

After getting something to eat at the buffet Bonnie went to the bathroom. As she finished up and checked her outfit in the mirror she noticed two women who looked to be in their mid-20s, maybe a little older, looking at her every so often. Feeling a little self-conscious she looked at them ready to defend herself if they tried to insult her. Their costumes were quite modest compared to some of the near hooker-wear Bonnie had observed at the party so far. One of the women was dressed up as a cat in a black, full-length, long-sleeve bodysuit with a tail, cat ears, painted on nose and whiskers and black, kitten-heel boots. Bonnie laughed internally, reminded of her trip to New York as a teenager when she saw Cats on Broadway with Grams. The other woman was dressed as a She-Devil in a long, red dress with long sleeves and a split just above the knee, red stilettos and devil horns.

"Nice outfit," the She-Devil said to Bonnie.

"Thanks," Bonnie replied, not sure if the woman was being sarcastic.

"It looks great," The other woman told her. "Different," she added in a softer more sincere tone than the first woman.

"I thought it might be too much," Bonnie responded, now trusting that they weren't about to criticise her sexy soldier costume.

"Have you seen some of the costumes out there!" said the She-Devil sarcastically, referring to the semi-nudity of some of the outfits.

They all smiled at that comment.

"Is that your real hair?" the cat queried.

"No..." Bonnie answered.

"It really suits you." the cat added. "Thank you," Bonnie replied, pleased that herself and Enzo weren't the only ones who appreciated the Look.

"You two look really great too," Bonnie complimented them.

Their costumes were simple but classy.

"You don't sound like you're from around here," the She-Devil commented.

 _Neither do you_ , Bonnie thought to herself.

"Where you from?" the She-Devil asked.

"Atlanta," Bonnie lied. After what happened in New York she never knew where employees of the Armory would turn up. That was one of the reasons she and Enzo had kept their sunglasses on and didn't intend to take them off until they were on their way home. Still not much of a disguise but better than nothing. And, as part of a costume it was one of the few occasions a person could get away with wearing sunglasses indoors at night without coming off as a bit of a douche.

"Where you guys from?" Bonnie questioned before she had to elaborate on the subject of home.

"We're from Baltimore," the She-Devil informed her. "We came up with our boyfriends. Well, this one recently got engaged," she added nodding towards the cat.

"Congratulations," Bonnie said to the cat.

"Thank you," she responded. "Who'd you come with?" the cat inquired.

"My boyfriend too." Bonnie answered. The cat nodded.

"I'm Lauren and this is Angela," she gestured towards the She-Devil.

"I'm Abby," Bonnie lied. Her mother's name was the first to enter her mind. "Well I better get back before my boyfriend thinks I've been kidnapped." She was only half joking as Enzo would actually suspect she'd been kidnapped by the Armory if she disappeared for too long.

"See you later," the women said.

"Bye," Bonnie replied exiting the bathroom.

When Bonnie returned to Enzo she told him, "If a cat and a She-Devil come up and talk to me my name is Abby."

"What?" he said confused.

"We need to think of a fake name for you too..." she added as she took his hand and led him off to engage in some more Halloween activities.

#

After posing for a Halloween portrait with a waxwork model of Dracula as a little real vampire/fictional vampire joke, Bonnie and Enzo went to the bar.

"I'm just gonna put these in the car," he told her, referring to the big bottle of champagne and their portrait. "Wait for me here," he requested.

"Sure," she said giving him the car keys.

Five minutes later Enzo returned giving the car keys back to Bonnie. Seconds later Lauren and Angela arrived at the bar with two men who Bonnie assumed were their partners.

"Hey again," Angela said to Bonnie as the group approached her and Enzo.

"Hey," Bonnie replied.

"This is my fiancé, Anthony," Lauren informed them, obviously a little tipsy, as she introduced the man who had his arm around her waist.

"Hey," the man greeted Enzo and Bonnie with a nod.

"That's Sean, Angela's boyfriend," Lauren added before Angela could introduce him. "This is Abby," Lauren told the guys.

"I'm Clyde," Enzo told the group.

Bonnie turned to look at him with a _what the fuck?_ look on her face. Clearly he was mocking her request for a fake name. Since she was really a Bonnie he might as well pretend to be a Clyde.

"You didn't say he was British," Angela commented.

"Known him so long I don't even think about it anymore," Bonnie responded.

"You based in Atlanta too?" Angela questioned Enzo.

"Yeah," he said looking at Bonnie to ensure he was keeping in line with her story.

"Well your outfit looks great Clyde," Lauren told him. He and Bonnie shared a look with each other, almost bursting into laughter when Lauren said the fake name.

"Thank you," Enzo responded with a smile.

"Anthony refused to dress up like a dog and go along with the cat and dog theme. That's why he's dressed up like Dog the bounty hunter instead," Lauren told them.

Sean and Angela gave each other a look that said although Lauren and Anthony may have fought like cats and dogs at times, she probably could have gotten him to go the whole hog and don the dog costume without too much of a fight if she really wanted to. She had him wrapped around her little finger.

"Looks good," Enzo gave Anthony the compliment genuinely and at least someone else was wearing sunglasses too.

Sean was dressed as a devil to match Angela's She-Devil costume. "We gonna get some more drinks then?" Sean said.

They all ordered a round and once the drinks were finished the girls were ready to dance. Not much for dancing the guys stayed at the bar while Lauren and Angela took Bonnie on to the dance floor. Enzo was glad she had some female company. He knew how much she missed Elena and Caroline and he wasn't complaining about having some non-female company for himself either. Enzo heard Anthony and Sean chatting in the background while he watched Bonnie on the dance floor. Her camouflage soldier costume revealed just enough skin to be sexy but tasteful. As she danced to the upbeat music Enzo became entranced by the way the cropped t-shirt and low rise mini-skirt showed off the curve of her breasts, the smooth, soft caramel skin of her abdomen and the toned, feminine shape of her thighs. Moving his gaze to her face he admired the way her lips curled into a beautiful smile and the way her exquisite green eyes must have been gleaming with enjoyment behind the sunglasses. He pulled himself out of his thoughts before they ran away with him and tried to make the most of the male company.

"Lucky escape tonight man," Sean said to Anthony.

"What do you mean?" Anthony asked.

"With the whole dog costume," Sean said

"I was never gonna dress up like an overgrown puppy," he replied.

"Yeah right," Sean said. "You know she has you by the balls," Sean told him.

"Whatever," Anthony said smiling, as all of them watched the girls on the dance floor.

Sean made the whip noise indicating that Anthony was in fact whipped and Enzo chuckled quietly at their banter.

"You're just jealous," Anthony said smirking at his friend.

"Of what?" Sean began "Your lack of freedom," he joked.

Anthony rolled his eyes. "Clyde, you look like you understand how an adult relationship works," Anthony said.

Enzo almost forgot his fake name before answering. "Yeah," he admitted.

"How long you been with Abby?" Anthony asked.

"About 6 months. But I've known her for years." He also felt like they'd been together for years. They had the whole best friends and lovers type of relationship that a lot of people envied.

"I've been with Lauren for 4 years," Anthony began. "She keeps me grounded. We've been through a lot together. Couldn't imagine being with anybody else, as corny as it sounds. We're a team," he finished.

"Hope you still feel that way 10 years down the line when you have four kids, a pot belly and you start losing your hair from stress," Sean teased. The three men laughed at that.

Enzo knew exactly what Anthony meant because he and Bonnie were the same. She was a positive influence in his immortal life. For one thing she'd made him more sociable and approachable. It's not as if he was lacking in confidence, but, he never would have guessed a few years ago that he'd go from being a lone wolf to being at a Halloween party, watching his girlfriend on the dance floor in a sexy soldier costume, while engaging in some male bonding with a couple of strangers and actually enjoying himself at that. He didn't even feel the vampiric urge to make them his dinner.

The girls returned to the bar to get their men as the music had slowed down.

"I know this music might not be your scene but you wanna indulge me with a slow dance?" Bonnie asked Enzo.

"Sure," he told her. Putting his hands on her waist as she walked in front of him he followed her onto the dance floor.

Once they reached the dance floor Bonnie wrapped her arms around Enzo's neck, while he wrapped his arms around her waist. They moved as closely together as possible. The DJ began to play Lana Del Rey's 'Young and Beautiful'. The song was probably a little serious for a party but the crowd seems to be enjoying it all the same. Bonnie tried to ignore the lyrics and contemplating her mortality and Enzo's immortality while he buried his face in her neck and lost himself in her familiar scent of vanilla, cinnamon and musk. The scent always turned him on and being so close to her added to the feeling. He remembered their dance during New Year's Eve before they were a couple. He remembered the first time he experienced being buried deep inside her. He remembered their nervous anticipation when he returned to the cabin after their first time. And, he remembered a plethora of other intimate moments they had shared. His state of arousal was beginning to become obvious to Bonnie but he didn't care. As the song neared its end he gave her a chaste kiss on the mouth, trying to maintain their dignity as he knew if there was even the slightest bit of tongue action something undignified would happen between them on that dance floor. He touched her nose with his and rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. It was crazy how he'd managed to maintain his self-control with Bonnie for so long before they got together, despite the ever present sexual tension between them. And, now that he had the freedom to act upon his feelings he couldn't keep his hands off her, whether he was affectionately stroking her hair or lasciviously smacking her on the behind. And it wasn't all about lust. He just wanted to be close to her. He'd spent more than one lifetime without genuine affection now he wanted to make the most of it.

The Weekend's cover of 'Drunk in Love' began to play. It was not a song which met Enzo's musical taste as he found it a little too explicit for the public domain. But he knew of the song and was fully aware of its sexual connotations. Bonnie leaned away from him and although he couldn't see her eyes behind the sunglasses, he could sense the look of intense desire that she was giving him. He imagined it was a look that said, _When I'm through with you tonight you won't even remember your own name_. He was under her spell again. It was too much for him. So, resisting the urge to use vamp speed he took her hand and dragged her off the dance floor and out of the building, not even thinking about saying goodbye to their new friends. He had only one thing on his mind.

#

When they got outside Enzo pulled Bonnie around the corner heading towards the car park. He paused for a moment then quickly pushed her up against the wall at the side of the building. With their mouths barely an inch apart he placed one arm around her waist, pulling her body so that there was no space between them. He rested his free hand against the wall above her head. Bonnie also couldn't see Enzo's eyes through his sunglasses, but he was giving her that same look of desire he had in his eyes when he pulled her up from the dip during their New Year's Eve dance. Bonnie pressed her hands to his chest eagerly anticipating his next move. In a sudden frenzy Enzo captured her mouth in a ravenous kiss. Keeping one hand against the wall, he moved the other hand up from her waist to cup her cheek. He then slid it back down along her neck until he was caressing her breast with his palm. Feeling his manhood pressing against her belly, Bonnie decided to play the temptress by breaking their kiss and slipping away from him by sliding down and ducking under his arm. He tried to reach for her but she escaped his grasp. She looked back at him and smiled cheekily. He returned the smile understanding that tonight their liaison would be on her terms. _When are things not on her terms?_ He thought to himself, but he wasn't complaining, so he followed her and they made their way to the car.

Enzo couldn't resist trying to tempt Bonnie in the car by kissing her neck and tracing circles on the inside of her thighs as she drove them home. She slapped his hand off her thigh and tried to push him away.

"Do you want me to crash?" she said with a breathless chuckle.

He kissed her slowly on the neck once more before moving away from her and folding his arms like a naughty child who had just been told off. Bonnie turned towards him amused by his current posture. He turned to face her with his mouth in a straight, expressionless line. When she snickered at his apparent sulking he couldn't resist smirking at her.

#

Thirty minutes or so into the drive Bonnie took a right turn along a quiet road surrounded by trees. She then took another right. It looked as if they were heading into some kind of parkland. She drove until they reached a clearing onto some grass with more tall trees around them. A half-moon provided a little illumination in the darkness along with the car's headlights. The Sky was almost free of clouds and the stars could be seen clearly. Bonnie parked the car in the middle of the clearing, turning the car off but leaving the headlights on.

She climbed over to the passenger side of the car straddling Enzo in his seat. She took off his camouflage cap and sunglasses so that she could see his eyes, but not allowing him to see hers she kept her sunglasses on. Holding his face between her hands she kissed him slowly and sensually before licking his lips then sliding her tongue into his mouth to swirl it around his tongue. He let out a sigh and gripped her hips tightly pushing his pelvis up into hers. Bonnie let her fingers slide into his hair, tugging at it every now and then as she continued to work his tongue with hers while slowly grinding her pelvis into his. He released his grip on her hips and breaking the kiss, to remove her sunglasses, the camouflage cap and the wig, allowing her hair to fall freely touching the tops of her shoulders. As sexy as he found the whole costume he needed to see her face properly while they were having such a profound intimate moment. Enzo looked into her eyes hungrily. He pushed the camouflage jacket off her shoulders then lifted her t-shirt up and over her head, throwing it to the driver's side of the car. He palmed her breasts over her bra while she searched for the handle to recline the seat. Once she found it she kissed him again, putting one hand on his shoulder while the seat fell back slowly. Bonnie then pushed herself up a little, taking hold of Enzo's steel dog tags, using them to pull him up with her as she sat up fully. She pushed off his bomber jacket as he grabbed her ass and began to kiss her neck. Deciding to take full control she leaned away from him, unbuckling the nylon camouflage belt and slipping it out of the loop holes of his combat pants. She took his hands off her ass and placed them behind his back. He looked at her confused for a moment while she smirked at him and tied his hands up with the belt as tightly as possible. She knew he could use his vamp strength to break free but she wanted him to play along. Next, she undid the button on his pants and unzipped them freeing his erection before giving it one long stroke with her hand.

 _What the hell is this woman doing to me?_ Enzo thought before Bonnie flawlessly lifted herself up, turning and manoeuvring her body so that she was now sitting in his lap with her back to his chest. Just the pressure of her butt pressing against his erection alone was enough to send him over the edge. When she moved her skirt out of the way and her underwear to the side so that his rock hard penis could glide inside her he literally thought he was going to explode. He let out a tormented grunt while biting his lip and digging his nails into the palms of his restrained hands. Hearing Bonnie chuckle at his suffering frustrated him but at the same time turned him on even more. She began to circle her hips and grind on his lap, causing him to slide in and out of her hot, wet core. How she was able to move this way in the position she was in he had no idea. The car wasn't tiny inside but the space was certainly Limited. _Must be all those years of cheerleading,_ he thought. She was definitely still very agile.

He desperately wanted to touch her. He felt like snapping off her bra and running his fingers over her nipples. The movement of her hips and the feeling of her tight, wet walls surrounding his manhood caused him to snap. Using vamp strength he broke free from the belt around his wrists. Bonnie gasped at the sound of the strong material tearing. Enzo put one hand between her legs to massage her clit with his fingers, while the other grasped one of her breasts, his fingers playing with the nipple. He pushed his hips up to meet her movements and bit down on her shoulder trying not to leave too much of a Mark. She let her head fall back on his shoulder, moaning his name in a breathless whisper.

"Enzo... let me turn around..." she requested.

He was enjoying this position but wouldn't object to the extra freedom of movement Bonnie turning around would allow them both. He let go of her body hesitantly and before he could react she opened the car door and pretty much sprinted outside. He put his hands out to pull her back but she was gone again and all he could do was laugh with frustration and awe at her teasing.

Enzo pulled his pants up before getting out of the car. He stood several feet away from where Bonnie was standing near the front of the car. She had a mischievous grin on her face as she stood there in a low-cut, lace jade green bra, the camouflage skirt, black stockings (the tops of which were now visible) and the black spiked heel, lace-up boots. She looked like a wet dream come true. With vamp speed Enzo picked Bonnie up by the waist and put her to sit on the hood of the car while he stood in between her legs. The mood changed from playful to frenzied and impulsive in a second. Bonnie ripped his thin V-neck t-shirt right down the middle as if she had vamp strength, pushing it off his shoulders and onto the ground. He followed her lead by tearing off her lacy, cheeky hipster panties, then latched his mouth onto hers as he entered her in one quick, deep thrust. He pushed his hands under her ass, gripping the cheeks as he plunged into her desperate to give them both a satisfying release. Her breathing became quicker as his movements seemed to have the desired effect. She lay back on the hood of the car arching her back as he leaned over her and slid his hands up the sides of her body, until he had moved her hands up above her head and held them down with his own. He linked his fingers with hers as he continued to plunge inside her. He couldn't imagine feeling this way with anyone else. The lust, the passion and the deep emotional connection they shared which went beyond all of that. He lifted his head to look into her eyes and she began to push her upper body off the car as if she wanted to sit up. Still moving inside her he leaned back so that he was standing fully again and she was sitting on the edge of the car. She pulled away from him and he slipped out of her as she shuffled further back onto the hood of the car, with her legs partially open and her butt and the toes of her spiked heel boots planted firmly on the now hot metal of the car. Crooking her finger she gave him an order.

"Get up here," she said, taking on the soldier persona for just a moment.

She was trying to tempt and tease him to death tonight. Using his vampire abilities he half climbed half jumped onto the hood of the car landing in between Bonnie's thighs, leaning over her. She pushed at his shoulder indicating that she wanted to be on top. He indulged her once more and lay back on the car with his knees bent over the edge of hood while his heels were resting on the bumper. She climbed on top of him and freed him from the confines of his pants again, sliding down onto his rock-hard length. This time she held his hands over his head with her own while she began to ride him. If she didn't let them finish this time he was going to have to tie her up and finish the job himself, and, afterwards he would spend the rest of the night teasing her as much as she had teased him. She continued to ride him, massaging his tongue with hers and further tormenting him. Luckily for Enzo, this time there was no playful but torturous intermission. She began to squeeze him with her internal muscles until finally the pulsations became involuntary as she climaxed with a long, soft groan, taking him along with her. He moaned his release into her mouth and they were still vibrating from the aftershocks minutes later.

Bonnie leaned up slightly using her hands and pressed her forehead against Enzo's as he slid his now free hands up her thighs, cupping her behind. They gazed at each other, laughing with satisfaction and amazement at the intensity of their coupling. Indulging in a little after-play Enzo brought one of his hands up to the back of her head and pulled her even closer for a kiss. He moved his other hand to her breast, tracing the nipple through the bra with his fingers. Bonnie sat up breaking the kiss and looked down at Enzo. Both of his hands were now busy stroking her breasts. She put her hands over his and let her head fall back enjoying the sensation. Suddenly, they heard a rustling noise. Bonnie turned to look behind her. Enzo also looked in the direction of the bushy space that was illuminated by the cars headlights.

"What the hell is that?" Bonnie questioned.

Dropping his hands to her waist and lifting his head up more to stare at the creature in question Enzo said, "Looks like a coyote."

"Seriously?" Bonnie said.

"It's rare, but yeah, there have been sightings in parks in Philadelphia."

"How do you even know this?" she said looking at him.

"Don't ask," he replied.

Turning back to look at the animal Bonnie said, "You sure it's not Alex... finally tracked me down. Coyotes are known to be cunning, deceitful and manipulative aren't they? Maybe the Armory figured out a way to induce shape-shifting," Bonnie joked.

"Wouldn't put it past them," Enzo responded. "You can add voyeuristic to that list of Coyote characteristics too," he said looking at the animal who was still watching them.

They chuckled at the thought of being watched by a wild animal during their passionate encounter.

Bonnie climbed off Enzo. He slid off the car then help her down. The coyote disappeared into the bushes. They redressed themselves the best that they could considering Enzo's shirt was ruined and Bonnie now had no underwear. Enzo took over the driving as they resumed their journey. It would be daylight before they got home.

#

A few days after the Halloween party Enzo sat on the couch in the cabin playing the chords for 'Drunk in Love' on the guitar. He still found the song to be a bit much for his taste but he seemed to find himself playing it subconsciously at random times since the party. Maybe it was actually growing on him. He heard Bonnie clear her throat in the background and turned towards where she stood in the bedroom doorway with one arm leaning against the frame. All she had on was a tiny pair of red panties, his unzipped bomber jacket, camouflage cap and the dog tags from his Halloween soldier costume. Without hesitation Enzo ditched the guitar and walked up to Bonnie with a predatory grin on his face. Lifting her up and over his shoulder he carried her into their bedroom, inspired to indulge in another "sexcapade", thanks to her sexy take on his military costume.

 **End Note: The inspiration for the mention of Lana Del Rey's 'Young and Beautiful' came from a Bonenzo playlist called 'Bonenzo: Come What May Vol. 1'.**

 **P.S. I decided to sneak the devil costume into the story as the soldier theme had already been running through my mind for a while. Also, please bear with me while I'm experimenting with formatting the story, it's not my strongest skill!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Still can't believe this story has come so far when it was only ever intended to be two interconnected one-shots.**

 **Anyway, thank you for reading thus far and for your comments - guess that's what has kept it going. I think this might be one of my favourite chapters so I hope you enjoy it at least half as much as I do.**

 **Part 7: New Year's Eve 2.0 (At Last)**

Enzo and Bonnie stood in the kitchen of the cabin working together to try and follow a recipe for bread rolls to accompany their New Year's Eve meal. It was their second New Year's Eve together. Their first as a couple. Enzo took the lead, measuring out the ingredients while Bonnie read out the quantities. While he didn't expect her to be all glammed up while they were cooking, Enzo thought she looked more like a student, than a young woman making preparations for an intimate meal with her significant other. Dressed in a grey cropped sweatshirt and black three-quarter length leggings, with her hair up in a messy bun, he still found her more alluring than he felt was appropriate. He wore his usual attire consisting of a black t-shirt and black jeans.

"You're using too much water," Bonnie advised him as he added the liquid to the dry ingredients.

"Ok, Gordon Ramsey," he said taunting her and ignoring her advice as he attempted to bring the overly moist ingredients together into a sticky mess with his hands.

"Move over," Bonnie said nudging him out of the way, then adding more flour to correct his mistake.

 _Bossy!_ He thought to himself. _But you love it._ "You're not kneading it properly, love," he said teasing her.

He stood behind her, pushing his hands into the dough with hers and leaning down to rest his chin on her shoulder.

"What do you think this is the movie 'Ghost' or something?" Bonnie asked him with sarcastic humour.

"You're the one whose kneading skills aren't up to scratch. I actually want dinner to be edible," he taunted.

"Whatever you say smart ass," Bonnie told him before patting his cheek with a flour covered hand.

"So we're playing that game," Enzo said before dipping both of his hands in the bag of flour and rubbing them all over her bare belly.

"Hey!" Bonnie yelled.

She grabbed a handful of flour from the bag then turned around and pulled at the collar of his t-shirt pouring it down onto his bare chest. Bonnie laughed until Enzo reached for more flour and put it inside the back of her sweatshirt. She yelped as he laughed at her, but she wasn't giving up so easily. She turned around to grab two massive handfuls of flour and smirked at him before throwing it straight onto his hair. His gasp and momentary look of horror had her in a fit of laughter before he reached for the whole bag of flour. This time she ran. Enzo chased her around the kitchen counter pulling the waistband of her leggings and dropping most of the bag down into the back of them. They were both in a fit of laughter by this point. Enzo threw the bag of flour onto the counter and wrapped his arms around Bonnie from behind while she tried to escape.

"Give up?" he asked her still smiling playfully.

"Yeah…" she said still laughing and now a little worn out by their antics.

He let her go and she turned around to face him. "We better finish the bread and clean up," she told him a little calmer now.

"Yes boss," he said patting her cheek with a still floury hand.

She tsked at him and slapped him on the arm as they went back to preparing their meal.

#

The bread rolls were ready to go in the oven, the salad was in the refrigerator and the steak was marinating. After cleaning up the floury mess and showering together Enzo was putting on his pants, shirt and tie while Bonnie sat wrapped in a towel in front of the mirror in their bedroom doing her hair and make-up.

"Are you gonna be long? Should I put the steak and the bread in the oven yet?" he asked Bonnie.

"Maybe wait about 15/20 minutes, I just wanna call Caroline while I'm finishing up," she told him.

"Ok," he said, kissing her bare shoulder. He picked up his suit jacket leaving Bonnie to finish getting ready.

Bonnie created a new number using the burner app on her cell-phone and called Caroline, putting the speaker on so that she could talk and do her make-up.

"Bonnie, Happy New Year!" Caroline greeted her.

"Hey Care, it's not midnight yet, but Happy New Year!" Bonnie responded.

"Girls, say Happy New Year to Aunt Bonnie," Caroline instructed the twins.

"Happy New Year!" the toddlers said to her in unison.

"Happy New Year girls!" Bonnie replied.

"Ok, go play," Bonnie heard Caroline tell them.

"So what are you up to tonight?" Bonnie asked Caroline.

"Ric and I are gonna go to a little party at a neighbour's house across the street, leave the girls with a sitter. To be honest we could take it or leave it, but, what the hell? Might as well make the most of it. Not like we get to socialise all that much. We'll probably only stay for a little while," Caroline informed her.

Bonnie had perfected her winged eyeliner over subtle bronze eye-shadow. She began to apply black mascara.

"How are things with you two?" Bonnie asked.

"Good," Caroline answered without any real emotion.

"Ohhkaay…" Bonnie responded.

"What do you want me to say?" Caroline chuckled. "The girls are doing great, we're all… content. That's all that matters."

"Ok," Bonnie said. She knew that Caroline was far from over Stefan, but she had to do what she had to do. A girl couldn't put her life on hold for a man. Bonnie began to apply a little bronzer to her cheeks and a gold highlighter.

Changing the subject Caroline said, "Let's talk about you and Enzo. What are you two up to tonight?"

"Dinner with just the two of us at home," Bonnie informed her putting on some red lipstick.

"You two…" Caroline said sounding envious of the romance.

"I know," Bonnie said coyly.

"Still can't believe it sometimes. I mean you both really suit each other… but before he got you in that cabin…never could have seen this coming," Caroline explained.

"I feel that way every day," Bonnie told her.

"So he actually got time off from…" she began.

"No 'A' words today Care. Enzo and I made a deal. We wanna put that mess to the back of our minds," she said meaning Alex and the Armory. She put in her silver leaf shaped earrings.

"Good idea," Caroline agreed.

Bonnie paused before saying in a serious tone, "We need to meet up soon."

"What's happening?" Caroline queried concerned.

"I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to do that thing you and Enzo don't want me to do soon. So… if the shit hits the fan and you know who tracks me down I'd like to know that we spent some time together," Bonnie explained referring to the impending visit to Virginia St. John's psychiatric hospital.

"Ok," Caroline answered in an understanding but sombre tone.

She and Bonnie had only seen each other in person once since she'd moved to Dallas, Texas. They met up in St. Louis, Missouri over a year ago to be on the safe side. Bonnie was always paranoid that somehow Alex would find out where Caroline lived and watch her home or something to see if Bonnie ever visited her friend. It was easy for Caroline to get a flight from Dallas to St. Louis, but it was a 3 day road trip for Bonnie and Enzo to travel there and back and spend time with Caroline.

Bonnie sighed. Trying to stay positive, in a perkier tone she told Caroline, "I better let you go. Have fun with Ric at your party and kiss the girls for me."

"Will do. Have some _extra_ fun with Enzo for me, if you know what I mean," Caroline told her.

Bonnie laughed. "We definitely will."

Caroline joined in the laughter. "Ok, bye Bon."

"Bye, Care."

After ending the call Bonnie unclipped the longish side swept bangs she had left out on one side of her face and put a purple and white tipped lily into the side of the curly updo near the back of her head. She put on her dress and shoes then sprayed on her usual perfume before making her way out to Enzo.

#

As Bonnie entered the room Enzo was just about to close the oven door after putting the steak and bread in. When he looked up and saw her he stopped in his tracks. She was breath-taking. Figuratively speaking. Her black dress was a long, subtle mermaid shape with a thigh high split. It had long sleeves which were a sheer black material that also partially covered her chest as it was sewn to a sweetheart neckline. The dress clung to her curves perfectly and the strappy, black heels she wore complimented the glamorous style beautifully, along with her make-up and the flower in her hair. Enzo thought the old-school glamour really suited her as she approached him.

He remembered that he was in the process of closing the oven door, which he did, then walked over to meet Bonnie by the dining table. They had decorated the room the way it had been a year ago as a throwback to their first New Year's Eve together.

"You look really beautiful," he told her as they stood in front of each other.

He put his hand on her back and felt bare skin. He took her hand to turn her around and saw that the dress was backless and the back was cut very low down.

"Whoa," He said with a sigh.

"Is that a good 'whoa'?" she asked him.

"What do you think?" he said turning her back around to face him, giving her a sincere smile and a light peck on the mouth to avoid messing up her lipstick.

"You look amazing too," she told him, always impressed by the way he cleaned up in a suit and tie. He always looked like he belonged in a classy black and white movie when he dressed like this, something which Bonnie found extremely appealing. His charcoal grey suit, light olive shirt and dark olive tie complimented his dark features. He looked classy and handsome, but still had a slight 'bad boy' edge about him.

He smiled at Bonnie as a 'thank you' then said, "Now that the complimenting each other portion of the evening is over shall we get on with opening the champagne?"

"Of course," she replied.

He pulled out her seat for her then poured them both a glass of champagne and sat down with her while the food finished cooking. In keeping with the throwback theme jazz and blues records played in the background, including songs by artists such as Sarah Vaughan, Nat King Cole and of course Billie Holiday.

Once the food was cooked and served up Enzo resumed the flow of conversation.

"Two decent New Year's Eves in a row…I must have finally repented for my sins," he joked.

"When was the last time you had a memorable New Year's Eve?" Bonnie asked him curious.

"Well… My most memorable New Year's Eve was the one where Damon left me to burn alive in an Augustine cell," he answered.

Bonnie stopped cutting her steak and looked at him. "I'm sorry," She told him, saddened again by his traumatic experience.

"It's history," he said putting a piece of steak into his mouth. Bonnie continued to look at him. "Really," he said taking a sip of champagne. "And that was an 'A' word, which we're banned from talking about tonight."

Bonnie put down her fork and took a gulp of her champagne too. It never ceased to amaze her how Enzo could maintain such a sense of humour despite experiencing so much trauma in his existence.

"What's your most memorable New Year's Eve?" he asked trying to distract her.

"I don't know," she said pausing thoughtfully as she took a mouthful of salad. "My Dad used to have a New Year's Eve tradition. It started a few years after my Mom left. I think I was about 5. He'd do a toast at midnight and let me drink out of a champagne glass like he did. When I was little he'd give me apple juice in the glass, then when I got older it was non-alcoholic wine." Enzo listened intently as she continued. "He'd toast by saying, _this year will be better_. It was always like he was sending out a wish to the universe that my Mom never left or that she'd come back so that we could be the family we were supposed to be. You know, share our lives together," Bonnie said wistfully while Enzo nodded still listening. "Even if I was asleep at midnight he'd wake me up for the toast. Then, when I was about 15 the tradition stopped. Like he just gave up, lost hope." She took another sip of champagne.

"Do you look like your Mum?" Enzo asked.

"I look more like my Mom than my Dad," she answered.

"Maybe he saw her in you. You were growing up and one day you'd leave him too. Not in the same way as your Mum… but you know what I mean."

Bonnie nodded.

"Sometimes people disconnect with the people they love for self-preservation," he added thinking of how much time he'd spent resisting his feelings for Bonnie.

Bonnie ate quietly contemplating Enzo's words.

He bit into a piece of bread roll before asking, "Do you remember much about your Mum?"

"I was so young when she left. I don't remember much," Bonnie looked away trying to bring up a memory. "I think we used to play in the garden a lot… with flowers… and a swing…" She thought some more. "I really don't remember much about them together… apart from climbing into their bed one night cause I was scared. When they woke up the next day and saw me in between them they tickled the crap outta me."

They shared a smile.

"How did they meet?" Enzo questioned.

"I think it was in college in some politics class. I still have no idea how they ended up together. My Mom was always a free spirit, kinda hippy-ish and my Dad was very serious and focused. Opposites attract I guess," she told him.

"If your Mum is anything like you I can see the appeal," he complimented her.

She gave him a shy smile. "I know they loved each other at one point. Just still can't understand how she could leave and never come back. My Dad became obsessed with work when she left. Grams told me that he really tried to overcompensate for her leaving at first by buying me presents, taking me on trips, but for years I kept asking for my Mom… and eventually it got to him. He couldn't replace her. He was dealing with his own pain and he could never accept us being witches. He drifted away from me emotionally," she still felt the pain of that certain amount of emotional rejection from her Dad.

Enzo looked at Bonnie sympathetically. "Do you think he would have learned to accept you being witches if she'd stayed?"

"I don't know. He loved me, but everything between us was so impersonal a lot of the time. He'd ask about school and my general well-being. But I couldn't talk to him, not about anything deep. Grams was the only one I could really talk to and he didn't even want me to spend too much time with her because of magic. He just refused to understand it."

They both ate quietly for a little while contemplating their conversation.

"I love my parents, but there'll always be a little anger at the back of my mind when it comes to them. They always talked about protecting me and doing the best thing for me… but they weren't really there for me," Bonnie said sadly. "My Mom should have come home. Instead she chose to raise someone else's child. She didn't even try to make contact with me. There's no excuse for that."

"I know," Enzo agreed knowing exactly where she was coming from and hurting for her.

"The problem with Abby Bennett is that as much as she is actually a loving and caring person, she always needs her freedom. She even abandoned Jamie when she turned into a vampire. It's like she struggles to commit long-term. Guess she felt like she didn't know who she was anymore with her family. She told me that she had a chance at a new life after entombing Mikael, Klaus's father. She said her magic got weaker when she left, maybe because she felt guilty for abandoning me."

"Maybe she was too ashamed to come back after staying away for the first few years and it was easier for her to stay away. It could've been easier for her to take on the responsibility of someone else's child because it's not really her responsibility. If she couldn't commit to looking after him there wouldn't be any judgement. Less guilt for her to deal with," Enzo suggested.

Bonnie thought he had a point, though it didn't make her feel any less rejected. "She's always been really connected to nature and having a sense 'balance'. I guess she felt like she couldn't find that balance with me and my Dad."

"Do you think you'll see her again?"

"I don't know. We made plans when I was in college… but they never happened, even now my Dad's gone." Bonnie drank some more champagne. "Who knows where that woman's head is at? That's why I always focused on my friends. They were there more than my parents. I just tried to move forward and give up being disappointed with them," Bonnie said with a shrug.

They finished the remaining food on their plates and had another glass of champagne. To lighten the mood Enzo did the same thing he did a year ago to put a smile on Bonnie's face. He stood up and walked over to her.

"May I have this dance?" he asked putting his hand out towards her.

"Really? Again?" she replied with the biggest smile.

He gave her a small nod in response. She took his hand and stood up. They took a formal dancing position and moved smoothly to the music, giving each other a knowing smile. The sense of flirtation and excitement was still there, just like the first time they did this, but everything was amplified. 'At Last' by Etta James began to play and the lyrics were not lost on Bonnie and Enzo. When their emotions became a little too intense and the tension increased Bonnie tried to calm things down with some humour.

"What, no dip?" she asked Enzo with one raised eyebrow.

He obliged her with a dramatic dip which caused them both to laugh out loud. He brought her back up from the dip and they both looked at each other with an expectant smile.

"Don't tell me? You gotta go now?" she said mocking his excuse to try and escape from his feelings a year ago.

With the hand that was already holding hers Enzo linked their fingers. "Not a chance," he answered. "Nothing could make me leave you tonight."

He pulled her to him more tightly with the arm that was around her waist and unlinked their fingers, bringing that hand up to cup the back of her head. She put both her hands on his chest and he kissed her in the way that he'd wanted to kiss her one year ago when they were in the same position. Something about the moment made him fall for her just a little bit more as he poured his heart and his immortal soul into the kiss.

When they finally broke this kiss they were both dazed as the song continued to play. It really was like a spell had been cast to get them together. What they had was so pure, so deep and so real. It was something bigger than they could have ever imagined.

"Whoa…" Bonnie said breathlessly while Enzo laughed lightly, as they looked at each other in awe of their feelings.

Keeping one hand around her waist Enzo began to circle Bonnie slowly with a sneaky grin on his face, looking into her eyes as she turned her head to follow his movements.

"What are you up to?" she asked as he paused at her side and used his free hand to brush her bangs out of her face.

"What do you mean love?" he replied.

"You and 'the smirk'," she said as he continued to move around her until he was behind her and put both his hands on her shoulders.

He placed a line of kisses down from her neck to her shoulder, sliding the dress off her shoulder slightly to make contact with her bare skin before putting it back in place. He repeated the action on the other side of her body.

"I'm doing what I probably should have done last year," he answered, sliding his hands down her arms while he spoke with his mouth right next to her ear. He wrapped one arm around her middle while he stroked the bare skin of her back with the knuckles of his other hand.

"Thought you said you weren't sure it would be right at the time," she responded breathlessly, thanks to the subtle way he was touching her.

"Yeah, but I didn't say that I didn't want to," he told her.

He was teasing her, but since she teased him all the time he was trying to even up the score. He moved to stand in front of her again, taking each of her hands in his, kissing her slowly and deeply on the mouth. He broke the kiss, looking down at her with hooded eyes.

"I just love it when you're wearing my lipstick," she taunted as her red lipstick was smeared across his mouth from their kisses.

He smirked at her. Then, with her hand in his he led her to the bedroom. _Why does she always have to try and have the last bloody word?_ He thought to himself, as he took her to have some of that _extra_ fun she and Caroline had been talking about.

#

Once he had worn her out in the bedroom Enzo left Bonnie to rest for a little while as he cleared the dining table away. He moved the couch back in front of the fireplace, but left the coffee table out of the way to give them plenty of space to enjoy dessert on the floor in front of the fire. He put some cushions on the floor and put the champagne, which was in an ice bucket, on the floor along with two glasses.

'Dessert' would consist of a variety of winter fruits and a separate cherry sauce. In the kitchen Enzo arranged red grapes, sliced pears, passionfruit and peeled, sliced kiwi fruit on a platter. He poured the cherry sauce (not home-made) into a pouring bowl and added it to the platter.

Bonnie entered the room in the same short, blue, silky butterfly-patterned robe she wore when Enzo returned to the cabin after their 'first time'. She had tidied up her hair putting the lily back into place and replaced the red lipstick with a clear gloss since the lipstick would definitely end up getting kissed off again anyway. Enzo told her to take a seat on the cushions by the fire and she watched him bring over the fruit platter in only a pair of black boxer shorts. He then poured them a glass of champagne sitting beside her on the cushions opposite the fireplace near the couch.

"So now the movie theme has changed from 'Ghost' to '9 and a Half Weeks'," Bonnie said, referring to the film's famous erotic food scene.

Enzo laughed. Although the film was released years before she was born, with her Dad being away so much Bonnie kept herself company, watching a lot of movies over the years, old and new, even if many of them were not age appropriate.

"Only if you want it to," he retorted.

She narrowed her eyes, smiling at him then pursing her lips. He put the platter in between them and they began to nibble on the grapes while sipping champagne. Bonnie was looking forward to getting a little creative with the fruit, but first she wanted to deal with some other matters.

"So… I gave you a little history lesson on Bonnie Bennett tonight…" she began. "I know you don't like talking about your childhood but maybe you could tell me some things I don't know about you," she suggested.

He was quiet for so long she thought he was going to refuse to answer. Then, he surprised her.

"What do you want to know?" he said.

"Whatever you can remember. First memories…" she said.

"They're not good ones," he said looking at her with a tense look on his face.

"I know," she said reassuringly, putting her hand on his thigh softly.

He looked down at her hand then downed his glass of champagne and poured himself another, topping hers up too.

"The workhouse…" he began. "As I told you, my family left me there when I was 4. I don't remember them… I always imagine a woman with dark hair…maybe my mother."

Bonnie gave him her undivided attention as he continued, looking towards the fire rather than at her.

"All the children were kept together unless they were babies, then they stayed with their mothers'. All the women were kept together and all the men were kept together. Everyone had a uniform as if they wanted to remove our identity." He paused. "There were lots of sick people with diseases like scabies. A lot of people had their heads shaved because of lice… I slept in a cramped dormitory on a bag of straw with dozens of other children. It was always really cold and dirty."

He looked at Bonnie and she returned a sympathetic gaze.

"The food was disgusting…tasteless. They gave us the same meals everyday…barely enough to keep our stomachs from rumbling for more than a few hours. Sometimes when the hunger became too much people used to fight over the bones we were supposed to be crushing to make fertiliser. There was no meat left on them, maybe just some bone marrow inside if you were lucky." Enzo took another gulp of champagne while Bonnie rubbed his thigh to try and sooth him. He looked at her again.

"We spent most of our time working. From about 6 in the morning until 8 at night. They gave us a day's rest on Sundays…. As a boy I was sometimes sent to work in a factory or into the coal mines. They were supposed to give us a basic education but by the time I left that place I could barely write my own name," he revealed.

"Really?" This surprised Bonnie, as Enzo was so intelligent and worldly.

"Yeah. The "teachers" had no credentials. They were untrained and never stayed for long because it was such a horrible environment and the pay wasn't worth it. I didn't get a proper education until I was turned into a vampire." He looked away again. "They treated us like animals. I remember one boy; about 9 years old…dropped the "F" bomb and was beaten so badly he couldn't work for a week. They starved him for two days as well, so that didn't help."

Bonnie shook her head in disbelief. "Did they beat you?"

He nodded soberly. "Part of the daily routine of being in the workhouse. I was luckier than some of the others though, I never took a severe beating."

She felt angry for about his suffering. And this was only part of it. "So you literally have no idea why your family could have left you there?" she queried.

"No," he told her. "Still no answers there," he said referring to the lack of information from his so called cousin. "Children usually ended up in a workhouse because their parents were dead, poor or insane. Or because they were illegitimate." He turned to Bonnie and put his hand over hers where it still rested on his thigh. "Actually the insanity theory is a possibility," he mocked. "With Virginia in a psych ward, my own unstable moments and Alex's sometimes questionable sanity…"

Bonnie smiled at him and he smiled back. "Sorry, I forgot… no 'A' words tonight," he joked.

"Maybe they did have a genuine reason for leaving you there," Bonnie suggested. "With your connection to… the other 'A' word…" she continued meaning the Armory, "Maybe they needed to keep you safe. They might have wanted to come back for you but something happened and they couldn't."

He wanted to believe her theory. "Protecting a 4 year old child by leaving them in some hell hole…?" he said disbelieving.

"I know it sounds far-fetched, but we both know that when it comes to the supernatural world a lot of shit is far-fetched," she told him.

"True…" he responded.

"So you left the workhouse when you were 14?" she probed, remembering what he'd said when he opened up to her a little about his life years ago.

"Left is an understatement," he said with a sardonic chuckle. "The workhouse got overcrowded, so they decided to 'relieve' a lot of the healthy, young men of their duties… and I was one of them," he explained.

"What did you do?" she asked.

Enzo refilled their glasses with more champagne and drank half the glass before resuming his story.

"I had to steal or beg to survive. I stole food, clothes…things to sell…it was all a little bit 'Oliver Twist'." He paused thoughtfully. "I stopped begging when I was 17 though. Some stuck up middle-class men tricked me into going into a tavern with them by feeding me and getting me drunk. Then… they took me out onto the streets at night and beat me up for fun."

Bonnie had to force herself not to let out some tears at that revelation. She stroked the side of his face to comfort him. He put his hand over hers, giving it a squeeze, then dropped it back down to continue talking.

"I was homeless so I slept in the day… usually in a graveyard or just on a bench, sitting up. People would be less likely to interfere with you if you were sitting up," he explained. "At night I was always on the move trying to get warm." He paused. "When times were really desperate…"

"How could they get more desperate?" Bonnie interrupted him.

He smiled at her. "Trust me they could…and when they did I had to collect leeches for bloodletting…"

Bonnie's forehead creased with shock.

"The pay was ridiculously bad and it was usually something women did for money. But I had to survive," he continued.

 _And you have_ , she thought.

"Anyway, eventually I got irregular work in factories and sometimes on the docks. I just about managed to keep a roof over my head staying at various overcrowded apartments. I managed to save up to travel from Southampton to New York, but I was sick so they refused to let me travel. That's when Lily saved me. She said she understood what it felt like to be put out like discarded trash and she 'turned' me," he finished.

Lily may have had her faults but Bonnie was grateful that she had saved Enzo and now she fully understood why he admired the woman so much.

Bonnie stretched her legs out in front of her and took a few sips of champagne before asking, "So where does the line cook come into things?"

Enzo chuckled softly. "When I first ended up on the streets I used to collect scraps to eat off the street at the back of a restaurant. One day the line cook caught me and I guess he took pity on this scrawny under-nourished child who probably looked about 9 years old rather than 14. Every evening after that he gave me leftovers wrapped up in newspaper."

"How did you know he was Italian?" Bonnie queried.

"He told me. When I heard his accent I asked him where he was from and he said Italy. Not that I knew anything about the place at the time thanks to the wonderful education I received at the workhouse," he said sarcastically. "I thought he looked like me. Not that I got to see my own face that often back then, so maybe I imagined that part, but he had dark features. In my mind I concocted some story that my mother was a maid or something who got pregnant after having an affair with the line cook. I imagined that she couldn't take care of me and he didn't know about me but he felt an unknown paternal bond towards me because of it. I actually got to a point where I really believed the story."

"You needed something to hold on to," Bonnie told him.

"Yeah. Well after a few months the man disappeared from the restaurant and I had to find other ways to survive."

"Do you have any positive memories?" Bonnie asked him.

"Music," he answered. "It was always a comfort. Wherever I heard it I stopped and listened. From a church… a tavern…some rich family's social gathering…or coming from the window of someone having lessons. It was soothing," he told her. "There was a shop in London that fascinated me. They made stringed instruments in the late 1800s. Cellos, violins, the 'romantic' guitar. After I was 'turned' I taught myself how to play the guitar."

Bonnie sighed, taking in everything he'd told her. "You have seriously been through a lot… and I guess that's barely half of it. You and Ric would have a lot to talk about with all that history."

"I'm sure we would. But, that's enough for today's history lesson on Enzo St. John." He felt relieved that he'd told Bonnie so much, but also a little emotionally drained. He'd never revealed so much of his past in such detail to anyone. He'd never forget his past but he wanted to focus on his future. And at present things were better than they had ever been.

#

Enzo put the platter of fruit behind him and turned to face Bonnie. He lifted her legs up and put them across his lap then offered her some grapes. He teased her a little before allowing her to take the fruit into her mouth.

"Can't you ever be serious?" she said laughing. "Thought we were supposed to be creating an erotic re-enactment of '9 and a Half Weeks' here."

He chuckled softly and when he offered her another grape she snatched it from his hand and teased him in the same way he had teased her before popping it into his mouth.

"Ok, enough playing," he said a little more seriously.

He offered her another grape. This time she held it between her teeth then moved towards him so he could bite into half of it. He smiled then bit off his half of the grape, kissing her in the process.

"Better… Much more adult," she said giving him a sultry look.

Enzo used one hand to stroke her thigh, using his free hand to get some sliced kiwi fruit. He brought the fruit to Bonnie's lips, painting them with the juice before licking it off her mouth then pulling away and putting the kiwi into her mouth. They were both getting a little flustered.

Bonnie lifted herself off of the cushions on the floor and straddled him. She reached over to the platter, taking a slice of pear and dipping it into the cherry sauce. She held it above his mouth so that he had to tilt his head back slightly. As he opened his mouth she allowed the sauce to drip onto his tongue. Before he had a chance to swallow it she gave him a tongue twisting kiss, ensuring that she got to taste the cherry sauce too. She bit off half of the pear, putting the other half into his mouth and gave him a self-satisfied smile as she saw the effects of her seduction evident in his slightly dazed expression.

Not allowing her to get the upper hand Enzo dipped her backwards and got her to lay down on the cushions on the floor. He opened up the robe to reveal a pair of black satin bikini briefs. Leaving the robe only partially open to keep her bare breasts covered, he lifted one of her legs bending it at the knee slightly with her foot flat on the floor. He picked up the pouring bowl and poured a trail of cherry sauce from the top of her knee up to the area in between her collar bones. Bonnie laughed at the cool sensation of the pureed fruit on her skin. The sauce had dripped down from her knee to her ankle. So, Enzo began there, licking the sauce off her skin all the way up her leg, over her belly and further upwards until he got to her mouth and kissed her as if he hadn't eaten dinner tonight.

Bonnie looked at him with fire in her eyes and he mirrored her gaze. He picked up the sauce again and poured a pool of it into her belly button.

"Oh my God…Enzo!" she exclaimed.

"What?" he chuckled as she joined him.

He watched her, still grinning as he picked up a piece of kiwi fruit, dipped it into the sauce in her navel and popped the whole thing into his mouth.

"I can't believe you just did that," she said completely amused.

He dipped some pear into the sauce and ate that too before lapping up the remaining sauce from her navel. She giggled at the sensation.

"Don't know what's going on with you but you've made that sauce taste even better, love," he told her.

She just sighed and shook her head at him with a grin. He picked up some of the halved passionfruit. Holding it above her mouth he squeezed it allowing it to drip inside. When he was satisfied she had a mouthful he kissed her thoroughly, ensuring that he got to taste as much of the passionfruit as she did. They both chuckled. The food play was kind of a turn on, but more than that it was entertaining.

Enzo got Bonnie to turn over and lay on her stomach. He took off the robe and slid his hands up from her ankles to her back and then her shoulders. He gave them a squeeze and kissed the skin on her shoulder blades as he now straddled her. Taking more sauce he poured a line up her spine to her neck. He licked the sauce off her skin nipping her shoulders with his teeth once it was gone. He stroked her back with his fingers and she sighed, completely content.

"So how does this New Year's Eve compare to last year?" he asked.

"Well, on a scale of 1 to 10 it's a 20," she replied, her voice slightly muffled by the cushions she was resting her face on.

He looked at the clock across the room. "It's after midnight," he informed her.

"Really?" she said lifting herself up.

He lifted himself off her so that they were now both up on their knees facing each other. She curved her hands around his neck as he put his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him.

"Happy New Year," he told her.

"Happy New Year," she replied before they kissed, thankful that this time he was still with her to hear her say the words to him.


End file.
